


Avatar: the Legend of Remnant

by Zeroan



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, RWBY
Genre: Crossover, F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-26
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-04-08 11:19:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 43
Words: 333,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14104227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zeroan/pseuds/Zeroan
Summary: Remnant is in chaos. Fifteen years ago, the Avatar disappeared, leaving the world exposed to the threat of the creatures of Grimm. In his absence, the Fire Nation stepped forward to protect the rest of world... by taking it for themselves. But now a new Avatar has revealed herself and she is the key to a brighter future - but can Ruby master the four elements and restore balance to the world?





	1. The Girl in the Iceberg

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_I once had a friend who used to tell me stories of ages past, when the peoples of the Water Tribes, the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation, and the Air Nomads, coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_This friend of mine was the Avatar. Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he had the power to banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_With the Avatar gone, the people of Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. Homes were destroyed; families torn apart. And just as it seemed that things couldn't get any worse…_

_The Fire Nation attacked._

_It's been fifteen years since the Avatar disappeared. People have begun to lose faith, claiming that he is gone forever. But I know better. I know that the Avatar is still alive, waiting for the time to reveal herself once again._

_I believe the Avatar can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter One: The Girl in the Iceberg**

* * *

Jaune sighed impatiently, keeping his eyes fixed on his fishing rod. He had been drifting slowly through the freezing ocean of the South Pole for half an hour now, yet not a single fish had taken the bait.

There was no way he could go back home with nothing in hand. It was hard enough to deal with people mocking him for his poor swordsmanship skills, the last thing he needed was to give them one more thing to be remembered for.

Still, he couldn't help but feel bitter about his task. They knew he wasn't the best fisherman. There were plenty of people more capable than him, and this was a matter of life or death, yet they had entrusted him with the job anyway. Maybe everyone deserved to go a little hungry this one time.

The hook got stuck in a piece of floating ice, prompting him to stop his canoe and wiggle his fishing rod furiously.

"Stupid fishes…" he grumbled under his breath. "With stupid fish brains…"

He pulled harder on the rod, and suddenly, his canoe tipped to the side and he fell into the water. Jaune was fully underwater for a good few seconds before emerging, his teeth chattering loudly. There was only so much his thick fur clothing could do to help against the cold.

Jaune struggled to get back onto the canoe, which had miraculously stayed upright. He shook his head to get the water out of his eyes and looked around. In the accident, he had let the rod slip from his hands.

"Oh, no," he gulped. "This is really, really bad."

Panicked, he kept looking around. He couldn't go back without fish _and_ the fishing rod!

At last, he saw it, floating away from the canoe. Jaune grinned in relief and paddled with all his might, quickly making his way towards the tool. Luckily, the rod soon hit a miniature iceberg, making its retrieval even faster.

When he reached it, Jaune picked the rod up and cheered for himself quietly. Then he looked at the iceberg and almost jumped out of the boat. There, encased in ice, was a redhead young girl, clad in some weird black tunic. She hugged a long staff made of metal as if it were very precious to her.

"What the-" Jaune blinked. "I've gotta get her out!"

He retrieved his trusty sword from his belt and struck the iceberg with its pommel. Nothing happened. Jaune tried again, and this time a crack appeared.

"Aha!" He brought his sword down one last time, and the iceberg shattered into hundreds of pieces. Before he could do anything about it, the strange girl sank beyond his reach. Jaune took a deep breath and prepared to dive after her, but he stopped as he looked down.

A bright light shone from the depths of the ocean, piercing the surface and reaching high into the sky, like a beacon. The water burbled loudly, spinning in a whirlpool, and then it shot upward.

A pale hand gripped the edge of the canoe, and the girl's head emerged. Her silver eyes were wide with surprise as she looked at him, taking deep breaths.

Not knowing how to react in such a situation, Jaune did the first thing that came to his mind and screamed at the top of his lungs. Naturally, she screamed right back at him.

Slowly, the absurdity of the moment dawned on them, and they fell silent.

"Uh… C-come on! Get up here, you're freezing!" he urged, feeling agony just looking at the girl.

"Okay!" the girl looked around, as if searching for something. "Wait just a second!"

Before he could protest, she dove back into the water. After a few seconds, she emerged again and jumped into the canoe. The wooden construct wobbled dangerously.

"Sorry," the girl said, smiling widely. She raised her hands, showing him her staff. "I couldn't lose this."

"O-okay," Jaune blinked. "How did you get frozen inside an iceberg?"

"Uh… it's a long story. I was flying and I didn't know exactly where I was going, and then I got sleepy…" her eyes shifted away, then back at him, regaining that weird cheerfulness. "I'm Ruby! Nice to meet you!"

"I'm Jaune."

She looked around curiously, her fingers tapping agitatedly against the canoe.

"So, Jaune… Where _are_ we?"

* * *

 "Come on! Put some effort on it! Is that all you got?!"

The Fire Nation sailor whimpered as he ducked under a barrage of flames. How he'd gotten into this situation was a mystery to him and everyone else. He wasn't even a soldier! Why would the princess choose him over anyone else?

"Jeez," Yang crossed her arms, glaring at him in disappointment. "Fine. Go do your stuff. It's not like I need training or anything!"

He nodded appreciatively and hurried away, not casting a single glance back at her. The princess rolled her eyes and went to lean her back against the front railings of the battleship. Their little session hadn't been very productive, but it had left her sweating and panting in exhaustion.

She heard footsteps approaching and looked to the side, rolling her eyes in the process. "Yes, dad? Here to helpfully lecture me on my many failures in that, _ahem_ , duel?"

At forty years of age and middling height, General Taiyang was not the most fearsome sight, especially for a Fire Nation man. The fact that he had a constant smile on his face did not help the matter at all.

"I wasn't going to say anything," he shrugged his shoulders innocently. "Certainly nothing about conserving your energy for calculated blows, instead of dishing out the flashiest moves you keep daydreaming about."

"I don't daydream," Yang lifted her chin proudly. "…much. Anyway, it's not like I'm going to actually fight anybody of my level. Mother doesn't want us fighting people, just… protecting them," she noted. "And if things get rough, I've always got you by my side."

"As much as I appreciate your trust in me… You should still try and train more effectively," Taiyang said. "I'm telling you, a time will come when you'll be put against foes you can't…"

He cut his speech short, his eyes narrowing on something over his daughter's shoulder. Puzzled, Yang turned around and saw a huge beam of light rising into the sky, far in the horizon.

"Dad? What's that?" she asked in awe.

"That, my dear… is the Avatar," he tilted his head slightly. "It seems like he's in the South Pole."

"The Avatar?" Yang muttered, her heart beating fast in her chest. A smile appeared on her lips. "Score."

She turned and ran to the interior of the ship, yelling for her men to make a course for the South Pole at maximum speed. Taiyang stayed behind, his eyes fixed on the light that now faded in the sky, wondering how and why the Avatar was back.

* * *

 

If there was one thing Jaune had learned in the thirty minutes he had known Ruby for, it's that she liked to talk. A lot. He didn't mind it that much, but she hardly left him any time to reply. She asked about where he lived, how many people were there, what food they ate, if they had any cute animals…

It was a bit too much for a sane person to follow.

For that reason, Jaune felt very relieved when they finally arrived at his village. He docked the canoe on the icy shore and jumped from it. Ruby followed, now examining the unfamiliar sight in front of her in silent awe.

He entered the village with his new companion in tow. A bunch of children were playing in the snow outside their houses, and as soon as they saw the strange red-haired visitor, they flocked around her, jumping and poking her excitedly.

"Oh – Oh!" Ruby giggled. "It's like a swarm of cute… little… cuties! You're so adorable!"

A little boy stepped back and crossed his arms. "I'm not adorable!"

"Yes, you are!" she insisted, pinching his cheek. "So _cute_!"

Jaune lowered his shoulders in preparation as he saw the adults leaving their houses after hearing the commotion outside. His mother walked to him, shaking her head slowly.

"Jaune," she sighed. "Did you bring a stranger in?"

"Yeah?" he answered hesitantly. "She was freezing out there! Literally. She was inside an iceberg," examining her face, it was painfully clear she didn't believe him. "I couldn't leave her to die…"

"Jaune, sweetie… Okay. I understand," she clucked her tongue. "But the princess won't be happy about it."

"Happy about what?"

A high-pitched voice cut through the children's laughter. Ruby looked at the little ones in puzzlement as they quieted down and scattered, as if they were guilty of something.

The redhead turned around and saw a girl about her age marching towards her. While everyone else in the village wore dark blue clothing, hers was considerably brighter. Her hood was down, revealing long locks of white hair fashioned into a ponytail. A small scar crossed over her left eye.

"Who exactly are you?" she asked haughtily.

"I'm, uh, Ruby," the redhead answered slowly, then smiled and offered her hand. "Nice to meet you!"

"Weiss Schnee," the other girl introduced herself, shaking Ruby's hand for a brief moment. "What are you doing here?"

Ruby tilted her head confusedly. Now how was she supposed to answer that? It's not like she had a clear purpose for being in the village. It was just coincidence.

"I was in an iceberg, but Jaune rescued me," she explained. "He brought me here, to… I don't know, just stay a little while?"

"I see. An _iceberg_ ," Weiss's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And you wouldn't happen to have anything to do with that beacon of light we saw not an hour ago?"

Ruby gulped and looked at Jaune. He seemed more confused than anything else. He had been so close to the beacon she had made, and yet had asked nothing about it.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ruby shrugged. "Sorry. Hey, you have penguins here in the South Pole, right?"

Weiss stared at her as if she had just said the most absurd thing she had ever heard in her entire life. Ruby shifted her weight between her feet, feeling awkward and silly next to this royal-looking girl.

Slowly, Weiss lifted a hand, pointing to the fields outside the village. "Sure. Go look for some over there," she suggested, then looked at Jaune critically. "Since you're such good friends, maybe you'd like to accompany her."

Jaune groaned inward, but he knew better than to complain in front of Weiss. She had decided how worthy he was a long time ago, but she was always willing to lower that assessment even more. And who knows, maybe going with Ruby would be fun.

Ruby smiled gratefully to Weiss and ran out of the village. Jaune took hold his pants and went after her, struggling to catch up.

Weiss shook her head slowly, an idea forming inside her head. The girl had an Air Nomad staff with her, and a tunic to match it. She had been stuck inside an iceberg and survived. And there was something about her eyes…

"Right," she smiled to herself. "As if that could ever happen."

A girl like that couldn't hold such power. At least, that was what Weiss wanted to believe in. Needed to believe in.

Either way, things were about to change in the South Pole.

* * *

Jaune quickly regretted not standing up to Weiss. Ruby was quite eager to see the penguins, and they were now in the process of sliding down a steep snowy hill in search of the animals. He didn't know _why_ she wanted that so much, but the smile on her face made him not ask the question out loud. The girl might have been frozen for weeks, for all he knew; the last thing he wanted to do was ruin her fun.

He lost his balance quite often, almost tumbling down the hill like a ball many, many times. Ruby, on the other hand, seemed to be in complete control, sliding down the snow so gracefully it was like she been born for it. Jaune was beginning to suspect this wasn't the first time she'd done something like this.

Finally, the terror came to an end when they reached even ground. Ruby stepped out into the vast snowy field, looking around curiously. Her brow furrowed as she saw nothing but a handful of slightly larger mounds of snow, but no penguins.

"Hey! Did Weiss lie to me?" Ruby asked. "Why would she lie to me? I didn't do anything wrong to her!"

"No, I'm pretty sure she wasn't lying. Weiss might be a little arrogant, but she's a pretty honest person overall," Jaune scratched his head, facing the same dilemma as his companion. "There _are_ supposed to be penguins here. I know because I used to play with them all the time when I was a kid. Except on Grimm season, of course, because-"

"Jaune, watch out!"

His eyes widened, and suddenly he was knocked to the ground by a rush of wind. He looked up and saw Ruby jump over him, swinging her staff with a mighty yell. She connected with a large white wolf right in its face, knocking it back a long distance.

Jaune got up and looked around. More wolves approached from every direction. Their claws and fangs were sharp enough to rend metal, and their eyes gave off a primal sense of hunger.

"What was that about Grimm?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, I just remembered it's the season! Oops!" Jaune grimaced. "Ruby, we should run!"

"Don't worry," Ruby grinned. "I got this."  
Before he could ask what she could possibly do against so many Grimm, Ruby pressed a button on her staff. Much to his fright, a large crescent blade came out from the top of it, turning the non-lethal weapon into a… scythe?

She ran so fast, Jaune had trouble keeping his eyes on her. Ruby jumped and spun in the air, cutting a wolf in half. It dissolved into shadowy clouds, and she sped through them and to the next Grimm.

She delivered death upon the beasts with such ease, Jaune found it disturbing to watch. His eyes widened as she faced the last one from a distance and, instead of approaching it, swung upwards with her scythe. Air surged beneath the wolf's feet, throwing it high in the air. Ruby swung again, this time over her head, and the monster was sent spiraling back down, crashing to the floor mercilessly.

A moment of silence passed as Ruby pressed the button on her scythe again, and it turned back into a simple staff. Jaune stared at her in confusion and awe.

"Ruby, did you just… airbend?"

"Yeah," she smiled, leaning her staff on her shoulders. "Pretty neat, huh?"

A horn rang through the air, deafening every other sound for a while. Ruby frowned and walked back to Jaune.

"What was that?" She asked.

"I think…" he gulped. "I _think_ that was a Fire Nation battleship."

Ruby stared at him, but she seemed to be looking through him. Judging by her silence, his words were bad news to her.

"Jaune," her eyes narrowed. "We need to go back to the village."


	2. The Avatar Returns

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water.**

**Chapter Two: The Avatar Returns.**

* * *

 Princess Yang was like a demon in human form as she paced through her ship, shouting out orders to everyone within earshot. As they came closer to the Southern Water Tribe, she became even more impetuous, occasionally releasing flames from her fists without meaning to.

"Ready the catapult!" she ordered. "Light up one of the boulders and hold it there. _Don't_ shoot unless I tell you to."

The men hurried to obey her orders. Yang licked her dry lips, trying to think of what more could be done. A hand touched her shoulder and turned her around. Taiyang looked at his daughter with concern written all over his face.

"Sweetheart, you're losing control," he looked at the catapult at the back of the ship, which the shipmen were already working on setting up. "Are you really thinking of using that? The people of the South Pole are harmless. They would be foolish to challenge you."

"I know, and I won't attack their home," Yang frowned. "But I have to keep up appearances. We look weak in front of them, and suddenly, the whole world thinks the Fire Nation is getting soft," she looked to the side and added bitterly. "Except for mother, of course. She would blame it all on me."

"And if they don't have the Avatar?" Taiyang asked.

Yang gave him a look that told him she had nothing planned for that occasion. She turned and stormed away, no doubt to shout more orders. Taiyang could only shake his head as he watched her go.

* * *

 Weiss was inside her house, sitting on a chair with layers upon layers of fur covering her while she read a book. She had probably read that one a hundred times already. Nobody came to visit the South Pole, and so it was difficult to buy new books.

Not for the first time, she cursed her boring southern fate.

And just as the words finally started to draw her in, she felt a weird smell in the air. Something acrid. Shivers ran down her spine, and they had nothing to do with the cold.

A woman opened the door to her house and poked her head inside quickly.

"Princess!" she exclaimed. "The Fire Nation! They're here!"

Weiss gasped and jumped to her feet, throwing her furs to the side. She grabbed her rapier, which had been lying against the side of her desk, and headed outside.

Black sooth rained down onto the village, mixed with the eternal snow of their home. Weiss looked to the sea and saw a battleship coming. It was so big, she thought it might crush the whole village if it didn't stop. The flaming insignia of the Fire Nation was painted on its sides and front.

The battleship stopped just short of the village, breaking apart many of their fishing canoes in the process. Thankfully, Weiss' own ship was far away from the rest, and suffered no damage. A few seconds later, the front of the Fire Nation ship opened and its men lowered a ramp to the ground. Dozens of soldiers descended into the icy terrain, surrounding a woman.

"Stay back," Weiss told the villagers. "I'll handle this."

She walked out of the village to meet with the Fire Nation's forces. The woman from before stepped forward. She had blond hair the likes Weiss had never seen before, and violet eyes to boot. She was clad in full uniform, holding a spear in her right hand.

"Hello. I am Yang Xiao Long, heir to the Fire Nation throne," she greeted respectfully. "Do you represent the Southern Water Tribe?"

"I do," Weiss responded in the same tone, but didn't relax her grip on her rapier. "My name is Weiss Schnee, second in line to the throne of the Northern Water Tribe."

"So you're a princess too," the blonde smiled. "Tough life, eh?"

Weiss's only response to that was a glare. "Are you here to offer your prized _protection_?" she asked icily. "Both the Northern and Southern Tribes have reached an accord with your nation. We do not need your help against the Grimm."

"I know, I know," Yang lifted her arms amicably. "This is not why I'm here. I assume you saw the beacon of light in the sky not too long ago?"

"Yes," Weiss answered carefully. "We live in strange times."

Yang snickered and leaned a bit on her spear, as if they were talking as actual friends, and not dimly-veiled enemies. "So… do you have the Avatar?"

"The Avatar?" It was Weiss' turn to smile. "He's gone. Why would we have him?"

"I know what the light means. You're from a… _different_ place, but being a princess, I assume you also know," Yang stood upright. "I'm not stupid. This is the only possible place he can be in this wasteland. Hand him over… If not, we'll be forced to occupy your village until he shows up."

Weiss stared at her emotionlessly, considering her options in silence.

She had to face it now that this other princess put it to words. The Avatar was back, and he… _she_ was Ruby. And right now, that dolt was out playing with penguins.

She could take a diplomatic approach and tell the truth to the Fire Nation princess. They would wait, and the tribe wouldn't be disturbed. All that would happen was Ruby would be taken away for whatever purpose they had for her.

Weiss didn't linger on that thought for long. It didn't matter if the Avatar was a wise man or a childish girl, she couldn't let such a person fall on the hands of the Fire Lord. Whether she liked it or not, Ruby was humanity's last hope.

Weiss raised her rapier. "You won't take the Avatar," she declared. "And you won't invade this village."

"…Okay," Yang sighed. "I warned you. Men, stand back. I'll take care of this Ice Queen myself."

Yang dashed forward, swinging her spear over her head and down towards Weiss' left shoulder, but Weiss simply slid to the side and stuck her rapier out, scoring a hit on Yang's breastplate.

The blonde stumbled back, catching her breath. She was lucky her armor was strong, but the blow still hurt. Not more than her pride, though. With a yell, she reengaged her opponent, moving her spear so fast Weiss couldn't find any openings.

Weiss' breath crystalized in the air as she panted. It was difficult and tiring to repel such an assault at close range. While her weapon was more suited for a duel than the spear, Weiss had to admit… she didn't know very well how to use it. So, she would have to search for an advantage elsewhere.

Concentrating, she felt the energy surrounding her, the living ambient she was in. It was difficult, but after a while, she felt it – that familiar tug, that flush of power into her body. Weiss yelled and thrust her hand forward.

A drop of water the size of a small rock flew from the sea in high velocity and struck the side of Yang's head. The blonde halted her attack and blinked, feeling water running down her back.

"That…" she started to laugh. "…was pathetic!"

Weiss gritted her teeth and tried again. A string of water whipped in Yang's direction, but with a flick of her hand, the Fire Nation princess brushed the attack off.

"Okay. You wanna play like that?" Yang grinned. "Let me show what _real_ bending looks like."

She threw her spear away and swung her fist, releasing a fiery barrage at her opponent. Weiss dove to the side and fell to the ground, narrowly dodging the projectile.

Yang stepped closer and looked down at her, a wide smile on her lips. "Yep. That taught you something," she said. "Will you please cooperate now?"

"Hey!" A new voice called from behind her. "Leave her alone!"

Weiss looked up and saw Ruby marching towards them, a serious expression on an otherwise innocent face. Jaune trailed behind her, looking tired, but somewhat courageous.

Yang turned and looked at the new arrivals. Her eyes locked on Ruby's, and she raised an eyebrow slowly.

"And you are…?"

"I'm the one you want," the redhead declared, stopping and slamming her staff on the ground before her. "My name is Ruby, and I am the Avatar!"

A moment of heavy silence passed as the villagers, soldiers, Weiss and Jaune all traded significant looks. Then, Yang stumbled back, holding her belly and laughing to her heart's content.

"Wow, you southies have a great sense of humor!" she said, wiping a tear from her eye. " _You_? The _Avatar_? Please. You're just a little girl."

"Miss, I'll have you know I'm fifteen years old and that I drink a lot of milk!" Ruby replied daringly. "Or at least I think so. I've been stuck in an iceberg for an indeterminate amount of time, so there are a few things that are still a little fuzzy to me."

"Okay. _Sure_ ," Yang rolled her eyes. "You're the Avatar! Oh no, look at my hands, they're shaking, I'm so afraid!"

Ruby swung her staff, and a rush of wind knocked Yang down on her butt. The children of the village cheered and laughed. Yang blinked several times, going from confusion, to realization, and finally, rage.

"You!" she shouted, standing back up. "You come with me, or… or I'll burn this village down!"

Ruby stared at her silently for a moment, then dropped her staff and bowed her head. At Yang's command, two soldiers separated from the contingent and took her by the arms.

As the Avatar was brought onto the ship, Yang turned back to Weiss and smiled.

"Thanks for the hospitality, Your Iciness." She bowed mockingly and stepped away.

Once their princess was on the ship, the Fire Nation men brought the ramp back up and got away from the shore The ship made a sharp turn before truly taking off.

Weiss gripped the snow in her hands and bowed her head, shaking with fury. She had been made a fool, and even worse, she had let the Fire Nation snatch away the _Avatar_. How could she ever look anyone in the face ever again?

"We gotta go after her!" Jaune shouted. "Come on! They didn't destroy all the boats!"

He raced to the shore, then looked back at the villagers. Everyone was staring at him with guilt on their faces. They were terrified of the Fire Nation… But that was no excuse!

"Just help me! Who knows what they're gonna do to her!" Jaune begged, preparing one of the canoes. "Come on! People! _Weiss_!"

The waterbending princess looked up, her eyes wide with surprise. She saw Jaune getting into the small wooden boat and felt her courage returning.

"Stop it!" she shouted.

"What?" Jaune did a double take. "We gotta-"

"Yes, yes! Good luck catching up to them in a canoe!" Weiss sheathed her rapier. "We're taking my ship."

* * *

 "Dad!" Yang shouted while she guided Ruby deeper into her ship's interior. "Get over here! I got the Avatar!"

Ruby cocked an eyebrow in vague amusement. So this tough princess had a father to take care of her. The world was weirder than she had expected.

Yang opened a room and entered with her captive. She sat Ruby down on a chair and waited restlessly. After a while, Taiyang arrived. He looked first at his daughter, and then at the captured redhead. His brow furrowed as he put his hands on his hips.

"Dad?" Yang called. "Something wrong?"

"No, I just didn't know there was a _new_ Avatar," Taiyang explained quickly, still looking at Ruby. "How old are you?"

"She said she's fifteen," Yang answered, and Ruby was a little cross that she wasn't being allowed to speak for herself.

Taiyang nodded. "Yeah, that explains a lot," he said. "But not everything. If you are fifteen, why did you wait so long to reveal yourself to the world? An Avatar's power usually manifests at an age much younger than yours."

"Well, it's a very personal story," Ruby smiled nervously. "And, you know, you're kinda taking me prisoner so I don't wanna really share that with you…?"

"Hmm. That's a good point," Taiyang grinned. "You are a wise Avatar already."

Yang rolled her eyes and slammed her hands on the table in front of Ruby. Taiyang looked from one girl to the other, then silently left.

"I just want to make this very clear," Yang said slowly. "I _don't_ want to hurt you. All I want is to bring you to my home, to answer for your crimes before the Fire Lord."

"My… crimes?" Ruby repeated, not quite understanding her.

"Don't try to sound innocent," the blonde glared at her. "Remnant is a mess. It has been a mess for a long time now, yet you haven't done a thing to help. The Fire Nation had to step up and protect the world in your place."

"And by protect you mean… trying to conquer the other nations?" The Avatar's face darkened. "Killing my people?"

Yang closed her hands and bent down to look her in the eyes. "Don't even try," she growled. "I'm sick and tired of people like you trying to throw blame at us. The Grimm killed your people! If anyone's at fault for their death, it's you, Avatar."

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Ruby pouted. "You know, I have a bad feeling about your mission and this Fire Lord. I don't think I'm gonna get a fair trial."

"As long as you explain yourself, you will-"

Ruby took a deep breath and blew it on Yang's face. The princess yelled in surprise and confusion as she was flung to the other side of the room and into the wall. Ruby jumped to her feet and ran from the room.

She looked to both sides, trying to remember which way they had come from, but she hadn't been paying attention. With no time to waste, Ruby decided to go right, because in her experience, right was barely ever wrong _._

Soon, she was standing on the deck. Okay, now all she had to do was use her staff to glide away… the only problem being that her staff was back at the village, where she had dropped it.

"Oops."

That single utterance turned the heads of all the men around her. Ruby gulped and smiled nervously.

"Heeey…" she slowly raised her thumbs. "Who here likes penguins?"

"Meh."

"They're neat."

"Get her!"

As they all dove to catch her, Ruby jumped, stepping on one's head to gain another boost and get further away. A soldier threw his spear in her direction, but Ruby spun expertly to dodge it.

"Okay! Can we all agree to be friends?" Ruby yelled, stepping backwards to the front of the ship. "I really don't wanna jump down there. It's _really_ cold! You wouldn't want me to get sick, would you?"

Yang stormed into the deck, releasing fire from her hands. "Avatar!" she yelled. "Get back here this instant, or I'll… I'll… shoot fire at you!"

Ruby was about to point out that she needed to work more on her threats, when suddenly the ship rumbled loudly. Something scrapped against its metal hulk, and then came a screeching noise…

A giant eel-like Grimm emerged from the water, screaming down at everyone in the ship. The sailors ran to safety, while the soldiers started to fire at the monster. Yang looked torn between protecting her ship and chasing the Avatar.

Ruby gulped, also not knowing what to do. Wasn't it her job as the Avatar to save people from Grimm, no matter what nation they belonged to? Even if they had taken her prisoner?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud honk. Ruby looked back and saw another ship approaching. At first, she was confused, but then she noticed two things: first, there was a Water Tribe insignia painted on the front of the boat. Second, Jaune was waving his arms like mad from the captain's cabin, trying to draw her attention.

Ruby smiled and prepared to jump, but the Grimm screeched once again and slammed its body against Yang's ship. Something exploded and a portion of the deck's floor tore apart, releasing _a lot_ of smoke.

The airbender closed her eyes, her fingers tightening into fists. She jumped, soaring high in the air, and opened her eyes. She was face to face with the Grimm. Ruby yelled and punched in front of her. Air rushed around her and converged on the eel, knocking it back and slamming it against a glacier.

That didn't kill the Grimm, but it was enough to scare it off. Ruby smiled happily as she returned to her feet, then turned and ran. She jumped again, intending to reach the other ship…

Someone grabbed her leg and pulled her back. Ruby gripped the railings, refusing to be taken away.

"Stay. Put!" Yang yelled.

"Let me go!" Ruby replied. "Seriously, your ship is burning!"

"Yeah, we can fix it later!" The firebender tug on her leg again, trying her hardest to shake her off the railings. "Come on! I meant what I said about not hurting you, I just need to-"

A torrent of water hit Yang squarely in the face, making her stumble back, dazed and blind. Ruby jumped and landed on the prow of the Water Tribe ship.

"She made it!" a familiar high-pitched voice yelled. "We go north at full speed! Lose them while they fix their mess!"

Ruby dropped down on the deck and looked around. Men in blue tunics were rushing all around, accomplishing one task or another without stopping. Weiss appeared before her, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"You're welcome, _Avatar_ ," she said. "And welcome to my ship."

"Huh?" Ruby squinted. "You have a-"

"Of course I have a ship. Did you miss the part about me being a princess?" Weiss smirked. "Come with me. We have a lot to talk about."

* * *

 Yang bowed her head low as she leaned on the guardrails of her ship. Night had fallen, yet smoke still invaded her nostrils, and her men were working hard to fix the damage the Grimm had caused.

She felt like a failure. First she had let the Avatar escape, and then she had done nothing but watch as her own ship was torn apart. Her enemy had been the one to repel the Grimm, and that stung more than anything else.

At some moment during her reflection, Taiyang appeared beside her, an easy smile on his face.

"The ship should be ready by tomorrow night," he said.

"That's not good enough," Yang muttered. "The Avatar will be long gone by then."

"Well, if we try to go any faster, we'll only damage the ship further, and then the Avatar will _really_ be beyond our reach," Taiyang shook his head. "You'll have other chances to catch her, dear. Not that I think you should dedicate your every effort to it…"

"I'll get her," the blonde turned to face him. "I'll take her home and mother will finally respect me. She'll love me for capturing the Avatar."

"She _already_ loves you."

Yang scoffed and turned her eyes. They had had this conversation a hundred times already, and right now, she was not feeling the patience for it.

"I underestimated her. She looked harmless, but she's powerful," Yang admitted grudgingly. "And she only used airbending. What about when she learns the other elements?"

"Hmm," Taiyang eyed the horizon in wonder. "What was her name again?"

"Ruby."

Taiyang nodded and took a step back. Yang watched him as he neared the center of the deck and lit two flames on his hands.

"Dad?" she asked confusedly. "What are you doing?"

"What do you think?" he smiled. "I'm training you so you'll be ready next time. Come at me!"

Yang grinned and dashed towards him, one fist raised in preparation.

* * *

 Ruby pouted as she examined the world map on the table in front of her. Weiss sat on the side opposite to her, and Jaune was leaning against a wall, looking out of place next to the Avatar and the Water Tribe princess.

Looking at that map was… unsettling. Growing up, her mother had taught her the four nations lived together in harmony. She knew the Fire Nation had effectively gone to war with everyone else, even if they said otherwise, but Ruby was still surprised by how much red was marked on the Earth Kingdom's territory. Things just weren't supposed to be like that.

"The Fire Nation has been trying to pressure the Earth Queen into giving them handing the country over for years. They say they don't want to conquer; they want to protect the other nations in the absence of the Avatar," Weiss informed bitterly. "It's just an excuse to go to war. You saw what happened at the South Pole. If a village refuses their help, the Fire Nation just forces them to comply."

"But…" Ruby gulped. "A-at least they're doing some good, right? Even if it's by the wrong means…"

"Oh, sure. Now let me go murder every Fire Nation soldier in the world, Avatar, for everyone else's protection!" the princess rolled her eyes. "You need to understand that the Fire Nation is our enemy. _Your_ enemy. You need to fight them."

Ruby nodded hesitantly. She would be lying if she said she wasn't angry at the Fire Nation, but she didn't want to fight them. She didn't want to fight anything but the Grimm.

"Now that you understand our situation," Weiss continued. "We need a plan. I don't think you're strong enough to take on the Fire Lord yet."

"Yeah. I really don't wanna do that right now!" the redhead agreed promptly. "Mom said the Avatar's duty is to master all four elements. That's, like, very, very important. So… I should start with waterbending!"

She got up and started to bounce around the princess, who did not seem amused at all.

"Weiss, you know waterbending! You threw water at that fire meanie's face to save me before!" Ruby exclaimed excitedly. "Teach me waterbending, please! Please! Please!"

"I can't!" Weiss turned her head aside, adopting a cold tone of voice. "I'm not a master. I can barely lift a drop of water that size. You need to find another person to teach you," she looked down at the map. "The South Pole has no more waterbenders. But the North Pole… That's where we'll find you a master."

"Okay!" Ruby smiled widely. "North Pole it is, then!"

"Alright. That's our destination," the princess said. "We should be there in a few months, if nothing happens to my ship. Or _someone_."  
She glared at Jaune, who lifted his hands in a gesture of peace.

"I-I don't wreck ships," he defended himself. "Not one this size, anyway."

"I'm sorry you got dragged into this, Jaune," Ruby looked at him sadly. "Your mother must be worried sick."

"Eh, she'll understand," Jaune grinned and scratched the back of his neck. "Probably will be happy I'm going on an adventure."

"If you want, we can drop you off at the nearest port," Weiss offered. "I'll give you money to hire a ship to take you back to the South Pole."

Jaune shook his head firmly. "No," he said. "I think I'll stay. It sounds like a good opportunity for building character. Besides, you girls need a strong, smart, and attractive guy to look after you."

"I agree with none of these attributes," Weiss replied coldly. "By all means, stay. It's not like I can just throw you in the water and leave you behind."

Jaune gulped. Was that a threat or a joke? Maybe being around Weiss wasn't the smartest decision, after all.

Before he could say anything, Ruby was on him, hugging his neck and almost knocking him to the ground.

"Thanks, Jaune!" She yelled. "You're the bestest friend ever!"

"Y-yeah, it's no big deal! Uh, Ruby, I'm gonna – We're gonna fall!"

As the two crashed to the floor and laughed, Weiss pinched her forehead and silently counted to ten.

It was going to be a difficult journey.


	3. The Southern Air Temple

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Three: The Southern Air Temple**

* * *

 The Schnee family of the Northern Tribe was known for its adherence to tradition; for its undying devotion to the people who had chosen them as their governors; for its wise approach to worldwide crisis; and, most importantly, for being filthy rich.

It came as no surprise that Weiss, even as but the _second_ heiress to the throne, had a mighty ship all of her own, with a crew of a dozen experienced sailors at her command. She could travel to any corner of the world as she wished, and it was hardly any problem.

However, that was a bittersweet fact, seeing as she had been bound to live in the South Pole by her family's orders. And it was even more upsetting now that, when she was finally free, she found herself utterly lost.

Weiss Schnee! Lost!

"Princess," Captain Port said cautiously, gazing at the horizon through his spyglass. "I don't mean to question your, eh… _wishes_ , but are you sure this Temple is around here?"

"What? Of course it is," Weiss said, though she didn't feel half as confident as she sounded. "The Avatar said so."

The Avatar being a fifteen-year-old girl who, since the two weeks they had been traveling together, had managed to start a fire in the kitchen not once, not twice, but _thrice_ , each time in a more convoluted manner. Weiss was a little wary of putting her in Ruby after those incidents.

"Just keep heading in this direction," Weiss told Port. "I'll talk to the Avatar."

She exited the captain's cabin, immediately finding herself in the deck of the ship. It took her but a few seconds of looking to find Ruby, but considerably longer to understand what she was doing. The Avatar was currently upside-down, standing with her hands on the railings of the ship, while Jaune watched with a mixture of admiration and dread.

"What," Weiss asked bluntly, approaching them, "are you doing?"

Ruby's eyes widened and, for a scary moment, it seemed as if she would fall down to the water. Thankfully, she bended the air around her and gently landed back on her feet.

"I was showing Jaune my awesome acrobatic skills!" she said. "I could totally join a circus, don't you think?"

"Oh, yes," Weiss replied dryly. "I can clear see that is your true destiny."

"Can't be more boring than the real one," Ruby tilted her head slightly. "I thought your ship was supposed to be fast…? It feels like we haven't moved at all."

One of Weiss' eyes twitched as she stared silently at the redhead. Jaune gulped and took a step back.

"Perhaps, Avatar, it feels that way because you've had us navigating in the middle of _nowhere_ for three days straight," Weiss said. "We are surrounded by nothing but water. There is no _Southern Air Temple_ in sight."

"Hey! We'll find it, okay?" Ruby pouted. "I know it's around here… somewhere… _for sure_."

Weiss took a deep breath so as keep herself from shaking the Avatar by the shoulders. "We're losing precious time on a needless deviation, and you're not even sure about this temple's location?"

"It's not needless!" Ruby objected. "I already told you, I have important Avatar stuff to do there."

At this point, Ruby was almost trembling in fear as Weiss towered over her with murder in her eyes.

As the two girls continued to argue, Jaune sighed and leaned on the railing. Traveling with the Avatar was turning out much less of an adventure than he had expected. Ruby was fun, and the ship's food was great, but aside from that… things were just _boring_.

His mental self-loathing came to a halt as something appeared in the distance. Jaune blinked and rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. "Uh, guys," he called hesitantly. "I think-"

"You can't explain yourself by only saying _Avatar stuff_!" Weiss shrieked. "Just tell me what it is you have to do."

"No! It's _secret_ Avatar stuff, I can't tell you!" Ruby shook her head fervently.

"Guys, seriously-"

"Well, if that's how it is, then I'll have to tell the captain to turn north!"

"No! Please, please, Weiss! You gotta understand-"

"GUYS!"

Ruby and Weiss turned simultaneously to stare at him. Jaune winced and pointed his finger at the horizon. Far away, a huge rock spire came into view. Ruby yelled happily and jumped in place, while Weiss' expression went from furious to defeated.

"Don't tell me _that's_ the Air Temple."

"Okay, I won't," Ruby stopped jumping for a second. "It's the _Southern_ Air Temple!"

She smiled genially at Weiss. The princess didn't bat an eye at her theathrics, instead turning around and throwing her hands up.

"I'm going to lay down for a while," she declared tiredly. "Warn me when we get there."

* * *

 Yang groaned and covered her face with her hands, wishing she could forget about the eventless horizon in front of her. Ocean, waves, birds, more waves, more birds. Of course, navigating the world had always been like this, but before, she hadn't had an Avatar to hunt down.

The repairs to her ship had taken a full day, and that put too much precious time between herself and her prey. For all she knew, the Avatar could be halfway through the globe by now. It was frustrating, and the only way she knew to cope was by practicing her firebending.

Practicing being a loosely used term, that is.

"Breathe!" Taiyang urged, half out of annoyance, half out of fear for his own skin, as he ducked below a barrage of fire from the princess. "Breathe, I told you to breathe!"

"I am breathing!" Yang shouted angrily, releasing another bout of flames at her father.

"Breathe better, then!" The general dispersed her flames and crossed his arms. "How many times do I have to tell you? There's no point in practicing if all you're going to do is throw flames nilly-willy at me! Learn how to control your temper, or our sessions are over."

"Your training doesn't make any sense!" she insisted. "When I'm calm, my firebending is weaker. Angry, it gets stronger! It's that simple!"

Taiyang shook his head in disappointment. "Better to be weak than to have power without control," he sighed. "Do whatever you like. I'm going to grab a bite to eat."

He started towards the interior of the ship, but Yang turned and gripped his arm as he passed by her side.

"Wait," she looked down at her feet shamefully. "I'm sorry, Dad. I was acting like a child. It's just… it's been two weeks, and we've had no sign of the Avatar. I think we've lost her track completely."

"You can't lose something you didn't have in the first place," Taiyang said sagely. Yang just blinked at him, failing to see how that helped with their predicament. "Okay. I understand you're worried, but you shouldn't be. Sooner or later, the Avatar will have to go inland to replenish supplies on her ship. If we stick close to the coast, we'll likely hear of her, or even come across the girl herself."

"Hmm," Yang tapped her chin thoughtfully. "That's pretty smart, Dad. I knew you were useful for something!"

"Why, thank you so much, my – wait, what?"

Before he could complain in length about his daughter's blatant disrespect, a sailor approached them with a spyglass in hand, an urgent look on his face.

"Princess," he bowed slightly. "A Fire Nation battleship approaches from the west. It's waving a white flag in our direction."

"A white flag?" Yang looked to her father. "That means they want a meeting. Why? And who could it be?"

"Beats me," Taiyang shrugged. "Is it too much to hope that they just want to meet new people to play cards with?"

Yang directed her men to wave an identical flag in response and to halt her ship's movement. After a few minutes, the other ship caught up. Now Yang could see the Fire insignia on its side, outlined with gold, which meant whoever commanded it had great power and influence.

A ramp was extended between the ships. Yang waited anxiously, knowing this distraction was giving even more time for the Avatar to escape her reach. Sadly, as the heiress to the throne, she couldn't just ignore a call for a meeting and continue on her way.

A half-dozen soldiers passed to her ship, followed by a tall man in a white coat. A black bowler hat concealed part of his ginger hair, and he carried a steel cane on his hands, spinning it around leisurely. A smirk graced his lips, as if the world was a joke and he was the comedian narrating it to everyone else.

"He-llo, _princess_ ," Roman Torchwick sang. "It is such a _pleasure_ to see you."

* * *

 It took them another hour to finally reach the Temple, and as they pulled closer, Jaune began to realize they would be facing another _huge_ problem… The supposed living place of the airbenders was on top of a gigantic spire that emerged out of the ocean, and he couldn't make out any kind of path or climbable surfaces.

"Uh…" He looked at the Avatar dubiously. "Ruby, how are we supposed to get up there?"

"Don't worry about it. It's easy," Ruby looked to the side. Weiss had returned from her room, having cooled off somewhat. "Do you want to come along, Weiss?"

"Fine," the waterbender said grudgingly. "We traveled all the way over here, after all. It wouldn't hurt to learn about Air Nomad culture. But how exactly do you plan to-"

"Hold tight!"

Before either of her companions could protest, Ruby wrapped an arm around each of their midsections and jumped, the wind boosting her higher. She kicked against the spire and jumped again, gaining even more altitude. Jaune covered his mouth with his hands, fighting down the urge to barf his lunch out. Weiss was mortified, eyes shut tight and arms trembling violently.

A full minute later, they reached the top. Ruby landed on the ground with a satisfying _thump_ and put Jaune down. The boy fell down and spread his arm. He never wanted to do anything like that ever again.

"That was fun!" Ruby exclaimed happily, then looked down. Weiss was still clinging to her, eyes still closed and her arms wrapped around the Avatar as if her life depended on it. "Uh, Weiss? We're here."

Weiss opened her eyes and only then seemed to take notice of her current position. She let go of Ruby and took a step back, feigning an air of indifference. "That was… eventful," she said evenly. "What now?"

"You guys wanna check out the Temple? There's a lot of cool stuff around here!" Ruby suggested.

"What about your Avatar stuff?" Jaune asked.

"Oh. I'll get to that, don't worry," Ruby shrugged. "No need to hurry."

"Says the girl who just jumped up a small mountain," Weiss noted quietly, crossing her arms in disapproval.

They were standing on a naturally-formed cliff, but just a few steps ahead, signs of civilization began to appear. Weiss hummed in intrigue as she examined the architecture of the Temple.

Buildings in the North and South Pole were compact and with few openings, designed to keep the cold out and protect from any sudden blizzards. But here, buildings often lacked a wall or a ceiling, making it seem like everything was connected, from living quarters to the outside courtyard.

"This seems awfully impractical," she noted haughtily. "What did the Nomads do when it rained? What about privacy?"

"Huh?" Ruby had been jumping around with her airbending, and was now perched on top of a lone wall. She looked down at Weiss, as if she didn't understand the question fully. "Rain doesn't really do anything here. We're really high up, you know? And what about privacy?"

"Did you sleep in the open?" Weiss posed, trying to facilitate the conversation.

"Yeah. It was never a problem for me," Ruby shrugged. "Oh, here's where we played airball!"

"Airball?" Jaune repeated. "I've never heard of anything like that."

"It's an airbender game. I lost the ball some years ago. It fell in the ocean, and I never found it again," Ruby said, sounding a little sad. "Bummer. It was really fun."

She landed on the ground in front of her companions and pointed to a building. It was the closest thing to a normal house they had seen yet, with four walls and a round roof. Weiss presumed that was the main temple.

"So, that's where I need to go," Ruby said uneasily, kicking one foot against the ground. "Could you guys maybe… go exploring on your own? This is something I need to do alone."

"Sure," Jaune smiled. "Take your time, Ruby."

He walked off the side, intending to examine a cluster of strange buildings that had caught his eye before. Weiss frowned, but decided to follow him in the end.

Ruby sighed in relief and turned around. She retrieved her staff from her back and entered the Temple, silver eyes narrowed in determination.

* * *

 "What the hell are you doing in my ship?!"

Roman chuckled and raised his hands amicably. Just one little greeting, and he had the princess of the Fire Nation shouting at him.

"Please, princess. This is just a friendly meeting, Fire Nation to Fire Nation," he said. "I didn't attack you or anything, now did I?"

"Oh, I'm just waiting for it!" Yang glared at him fiercely.

Taiyang pulled her back by her shoulders, directing a friendly smile at the other general. Truthfully, he despised Roman as much as his daughter did. Torchwick had been in the army for less than a decade, yet he had built a reputation that had yet to be matched. Dozens upon dozens of Earth Kingdom villages had been _won over_ by his efforts.

"It is a pleasure to see you, General Roman," Taiyang said. "Don't mind my daughter's manners, she can be such a pest sometimes."

Yang glared daggers at him.

"General Taiyang," Roman smiled. "It's been too long since we last met. How has your new… _job_ , been treating you? The Fire Lord didn't seem too happy about your performance, last I talked to her."

"Well, it's difficult to convince people to share their homes with firebenders, even if we only seek to protect them," Taiyang tilted his head slightly. "Couldn't imagine why. We have such a lovely reputation, right?"

Roman hummed and leaned on his cane a bit. Yang tensed, recognizing the predatory stance he assumed.

"I wonder why you are out here in the middle of the ocean, princess," he said. "Shouldn't you be in the Earth Kingdom, seeing to your mother's orders?"

"We are making our way there." Yang replied through gritted teeth.

"Really? Why did you leave in the first place?" Roman smirked triumphantly. He let the question hang for a moment before talking again. "Ah, it doesn't matter. You see, _I'm_ here because reports of the Avatar's return reached the Fire Lord's ears. Rumor has it that she's just a girl, and that she appeared at the South Pole, of all places. Kind of close to where we are, don't you think?"

Yang seethed in silence. She wanted to go over to him and punch his smile out of his face, but that would only make everything worse.

"She has red hair, silver eyes, small… And she's an airbender," Roman continued. "Seen anyone like that?"

"Nope," Yang replied immediately.

"Well, send a bird my way if you do see her. The Fire Lord handed me full responsibility of capturing the Avatar," he bowed mockingly. "Good luck on your own job, princess. I hope you don't get lost in the ocean again."

He turned and walked back to his ship. Yang watched him in shock, not failing to notice the cocky expression on his face.

"He knows we are hunting the Avatar," she muttered. "He was following us! Dad, what if he tells Mother?"

"He probably had his men send a bird her way already," Taiyang sighed. "Oh, well. I guess we should double our efforts on finding the Avatar. The last thing we want is to disobey her orders and not even accomplish anything for it."

Yang nodded and ran to the captain's cabin.

"Full speed ahead! We're sticking close to the coast!" She closed her fists and glared at Roman's ship as it navigated away from hers. "Wherever you are, Avatar… I will find you."

* * *

 Nothing had changed since Ruby had left the Temple. It was still the same dusty old place, filled with the same dusty old statues and dusty old tomes. Vines covered the walls, left free to grow and spread for eight years now. A slight breeze found its way inside through windows from up high, sending shivers down the girl's back.

She didn't cast more than a brief glance at the circle of Avatar statues in the middle of the room. She'd had so many years to look at them, she could picture each one of them perfectly in her mind, and in the correct order they followed. But she only knew the names of the most recent ones.

They weren't the reason she had insisted on visiting the Temple. Ruby felt bad about lying to Weiss, but she didn't think the princess would understand if she told her the true reason she wanted to come.

In the back of the Temple was a lonely door which led to a cozy little room. A simple bed with fur coverings sat at one corner, and a few paintings lined the walls. They depicted some airbenders Ruby had never met, nor did she know their names.

And up on the bed was a crimson cloak. Ruby stood silently in front of it. Her lips quivered, and slowly, she crouched and buried her face in the soft material.

"I-I'm sorry. I'm gonna make you proud."

Ruby stood, picked up the cloak and fixed it around her neck. Before, it used to drag on the ground, but she had grown a lot, and now it only reached down to her knees. A warm hood hung behind her, but she chose to leave it down for now.

She stepped out of the room and back into the main Temple. Ruby wiped her eyes and started walking towards the exit, when suddenly a bad feeling came over her. She looked up at the ceiling and saw countless pairs of red eyes staring down at her from the shadows.

Her tears dried up and she gripped her staff in both hands. Wind surged in a circle around her, and then, her silver eyes began to glow…

* * *

 Jaune observed the gray courtyard with baited breathed. The ground was blackened, as if a fire had run over it and left a permanent scar. The place felt haunted, and Jaune found it very difficult to speak all of a sudden, as if uttering a single word was a terrible offense.

"Weiss?" he called quietly. "What's this place?"

The princess turned to look at him. The usual judgmental look she reserved for him was gone, substituted by a mourning expression.

"The Air Nomads were all killed fifteen years ago. All of them, in every Temple in the world," she explained. "People say the Fire Nation was behind it, but the Fire Lord denies it. She says the Grimm sensed the Avatar's absence and attacked the Air Nomads mercilessly," she glared at the scarred ground. "I guess we know what the truth is, now."

"Wait, Ruby's people are dead? Every one of them?" Jaune stood petrified. "S-she never said anything. I didn't know…"

"Well, I don't blame you. The South Pole is cut off from the rest of the world," Weiss sighed. "I can only imagine what it feels like for her to be here."

As if in response, a sudden rush of wind struck them, and a moment later a distant scream came echoing their way. Their eyes widened in shock as they saw light pouring out of the main Temple.

"Ruby!" Jaune shouted over the raging wind. "She's in trouble! We have to help her!"

"Can you move?!" Weiss shouted back, fighting to keep her footing.

"I don't think so, the wind's too strong!"

Weiss gritted her teeth and took a step towards him. She grabbed his arm and moved again, but almost fell. Jaune stopped her descent and brought her back to her feet.

"There's no way we can make it there!" Weiss exclaimed. "We have to wait until it's over!"

They crouched down and held onto each other and the ground as the wind threatened to blow them away. Minutes passed, during which they couldn't hear anything except the deafening howl that surrounded them… until suddenly it stopped, leaving behind a haunting silence.

Ruby appeared at the entrance of the Temple, wrapped in a red cloak. Jaune and Weiss ran over to her.

"Ruby!" Jaune screamed, putting his hands on her shoulders. "What happened?"

"There were Grimm inside, disturbing the Temple," the Avatar said heavily. "I took care of them."

"Jeez. You look really upset. Are you okay?"

Ruby nodded once and shook his hands away. Weiss walked around them and peered inside the Temple. Rows of statues filled the building, their eyes glowing brightly in the shade.

"Is this what you had to do?" Weiss asked unsurely. "Some sort of awakening, to let the rest of the world know the Avatar is back?"

"No," Ruby shook her head. "That was kind of an accident. I just wanted my cloak back. Sorry."

"…It's okay," Weiss patted her on the shoulder once. "Do you want to do anything else, or should we head back to the ship?"

Ruby looked back at the Temple in contemplation.

"Nah, I'm done here," she said. "It's time to really get going to the North Pole."

"That's good to hear," Weiss smiled. "…Wait. How are we getting down?"

Ruby's eyes sparkled with returned joy. "The same way we got up here!"

Jaune and Weiss shared a significant look.

"We're dead."

* * *

  _My daughter, your insubordination has not escaped my notice. Your job is not to hunt the Avatar, but to spread the Fire Nation's protection over the Earth Kingdom. I entrusted that task to you years ago, and nothing has prompted me to change it since._

_But I know better than to force you to continue on that path. Your mind is on the Avatar, and you won't work effectively knowing she is out there. Therefore, I shall temporarily release you of your duties and hereby grant you permission to hunt the Avatar._

_Know, however, that I do this not out of kindness, but practicality. If you come to disrupt General Torchwick's mission, I will not hesitate to deliver the proper punishment. Most of all, I expect results. If you should waste months in a fruitless pursuit…_

_Do not disappoint me._

_\- Fire Lord Raven Branwen -  
_

Yang sighed and put the scroll down on the table before her. The royal hawk had arrived not an hour ago, carrying a message from her mother and, as expected, it was riddled with warnings. She could vividly hear the Fire Lord's reading the cold words out loud to her.

"And not a word to Dad either."

She walked over to her bed and laid down, violet eyes glancing up at the ceiling with no sign of sleep in them. What had she gotten herself into? A wild chase around the world, and if she succeeded, what awaited her? Acceptance? Honor? She couldn't know. Perhaps she should have thought better before taking this path, but it was too late to go back now.

Yang clenched her fists. She would shoulder on, and she would finish her mission, no matter how difficult it became. And if the whole world tried to stop her, well then, she would have no choice but to fight back twice as hard.

She'd never been particularly good at planning ahead anyway.

 _Do not disappoint me_.


	4. Caffeine Island

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Four: Caffeine Island**

* * *

Weiss sighed dreamingly, fanning her face lightly as sunlight bore down on her. It was a day of clear skies, perfect for relaxing in a reclining chair at the ship's deck. Having lived in the South Pole for her most recent years, she welcomed the refreshing heat.

Of course, she was alone in her method of relaxation, as Ruby was jumping around her constantly, unwittingly agitating the air that surrounded them, and kept babbling on about some thing or another. Weiss closed her eyes and pursed her lips, resisting the urge to scream at the girl.

"Weiss! Hey, Weiss!" Ruby tapped her in the forehead. "Look what I can do!"

Air rushed loudly on Weiss' ears, but she refused to open her eyes. "Ruby," she said slowly. "I am _trying_ to rest. I would appreciate it if you left me alone, just for a few minutes, at least. Is that too much to ask?"

"But… Just look for two seconds, please? Pleeease?"

Weiss groaned and opened her eyes, only to see the almighty Avatar balancing her body on top of a spinning ball of condensed air. The waterbender stared emotionlessly for a while, then closed her eyes again without giving a comment.

Ruby stopped airbending and landed back on the deck, looking at Weiss like a dejected puppy. "You didn't like my air ball?" she asked sadly.

"I wasn't impressed," Weiss shrugged. "It escapes me how it would be useful in combat."

"That's not the point!" Ruby exclaimed, exasperated by the princess's line of thinking. "It's supposed to be cool, and amazing, and awesome, and… cute, I guess?"

"It's hard to find anything you do _cute_ when you're _ruining my mood_."

Ruby sighed and walked away, realizing Weiss was a lost cause. She had been trying to get the waterbender to laugh or even smile ever since they met, but it was as if Weis was physically incapable of doing anything remotely close to those things.

If only Jaune hadn't gotten sick for the seventh time since the start of their travels… At least _he_ knew how to have fun. The sailors had taken to calling him _Vomit Boy_ , much to his embarrassment. Ruby felt bad for him, but she couldn't deny there was some truth to the nickname.

"Well, I _guess_ I'll have to have fun on my own!" Ruby spoke loudly, fully intending for Weiss to hear her. "It's not like I can't enjoy life alone!"

"Great," Weiss replied calmly. "Just don't forget we're docking at the first village we see. Supplies are low. Don't tire yourself out."

If Ruby didn't know better, she would have sworn Weiss had actually smiled at her own words. In an act of rebellion, the Avatar put her hands on her hips and stuck her tongue out at her, then promptly marched towards her room.

"Ah…" Weiss sighed. "Finally, some peace and quiet…"

* * *

"I can't stand this," Yang groaned. "Everything's too quiet!"

Taiyang shook his head in silence, choosing to not argue with his daughter for the fifth time that day. No matter how much he tried to teach her some patience, Yang seemed unable to stand still for more than a few minutes. While that spoke volumes of her drive to chase the Avatar, when it came to the quieter moments of their journey, it was… _frustrating_ to deal with.

"I mean, seriously," Yang cracked her knuckles and looked around her, taking in the stillness of her ship's crew. "Nothing has happened for _weeks_! Maybe we could speed up a little?"

Taiyang sighed.

"Speeding up will only make the fuel end faster," he pointed out, rolling his eyes outside her field of vision. "We'll catch up to the Avatar one way or another, and I'd prefer to be rested when it happens."

"Yeah, repeat that when we find out Torchwick got to her first!" Yang retorted heatedly. "That cretin. He's probably laughing right now, thinking he scared us off."

"Well, he did almost-" Taiyang stopped when he noticed the glare she was sending his way. "I mean… Yeah, that cretin! We should teach him a lesson!"

"We should!" Yang agreed cheerfully, then tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Maybe if I firebend at the engines, we'll go faster…"

Taiyang's eyes widened. "That's not how engines work!" he exclaimed, but it was too late, as Yang had already marched off to the engine room. Taiyang gulped and looked down at the ocean. "Well, if the ship explodes, at least we can swim for a while… he crossed his arms. "…before we inevitably lose our energy, drown and forever lay forgotten in the bottom of the ocean."

A moment of silence passed as he took in the weight of his words. Then, he straightened his stance and ran off after his daughter.

"Yang, don't firebend at the engines!"

* * *

Jaune groaned pitifully as he stepped down the ramp of the ship. Reaching solid land after days of traveling above water only made him feel sicker than he already was. He heard a handful of snickers behind him as some of Weiss' crew took notice of his predicament.

Weiss was standing a bit farther away from the ship, examining a map in her hands with a puzzled expression on her face. Ruby was examining every patch of grass around them, as if she had suddenly stepped into another world entirely.

"So, this is… Caffeine Island?" Weiss raised an eyebrow dubiously. "No, that can't be right. Who would ever name their home after caffeine, of all things?"

"Oooh, what's a caffeine?!" Ruby stopped long enough to stare expectantly at Weiss.

"It's… something no one will ever introduce to you, I hope," Weiss replied carefully. "Well, I suppose the name doesn't matter. As long as they have the supplies we require, I'll be content."

"Maybe they can sell us some of this 'caffeine'…" Ruby suggested curiously.

Weiss shook her head slowly. Jaune fought past his sickness for a moment, only to nod in support of the princess' mentality. If there was one thing Jaune never wanted to see in his life, it was a caffeinated Ruby.

Ruby shrugged at their reactions and turned to face Jaune. "Are you sure you're up for the trip?" she asked worriedly. "You look really green in the face, Jaune."

"I'm _fine_ ," he said. "If I feel really bad, I'll just find a bush or something. I've gotten very skillful at handling sickness lately."

"A natural charmer," Weiss deadpanned.

They started to walk down a beaten trail that led deeper into the island, passing through a heavily forested area. Birds sang and rodents ran up at the branches of the trees, attracting Ruby's attention as if she was a child. The Southern Air Temple had been home to very few species of animals, mostly bugs and one or two birds, so most of what she was seeing was new and fantastic in her eyes.

Jaune was too busy holding down his stomach to act the same way, and Weiss didn't care enough. The princess was occupied with thoughts about the place they would find – was… Caffeine… a respectable town, or a run-down village? Would its people even have anything to offer them? What if the Fire Nation had in a hold there?

She was so absorbed in her thoughts, Weiss almost missed a sudden shift in Ruby's behavior. Almost. One moment, the redhead had been gaping at the birds above them, the next, she was completely still, holding her staff with knuckles turned white. Her silver eyes seemed to be glowing slightly, but Weiss chalked that up to the sunlight reflecting off them.

"Ruby?" Weiss called. "What's wrong?"

"I feel weird," Ruby replied quietly. "…Really weird."

"Uh, your eyes are kinda creeping me out," Jaune said. "I guess it's Avatar stuff? Because it looks like-"

Ruby leaned forward, her eyes narrowing, as if something feral had woken inside her.

"Grimm."

Before Jaune or Weiss could ask for an explanation, she broke into a sprint, her speed being augmented by her airbending. Weiss cursed and ran after her, followed by Jaune, who understandably had even more trouble keeping up.

It didn't take long for Ruby to arrive at a great clearing, where currently a horde of Grimm surrounded a group of four humans. Giant snakes and boars ran in circles around them, striking at every opportunity, but failing to do any real damage. Ruby knew it wouldn't be long before someone was seriously injured.

She jumped high into the air and swung with her staff, directing a rush of wind at some of the Grimm. The monsters wailed and were flung away, leaving room for the humans to escape from their circle.

Ruby nodded in satisfaction and prepared to unleash her full power on the remaining Grimm, but to her surprise, instead of running away, the humans turned around and drew weapons.

"Okay, folks!" a young woman proclaimed loudly, gripping a mallet with both her hands. Her eyes were hidden behind a pair of shades, but her smugness was apparent in both her voice and smile. "Time to dish some payback!"

Ruby landed gently and watched in awe as the group dashed at the Grimm and killed them one by one, showing a finesse the Avatar had never seen before in her life. They moved in perfect synchrony, as if their very thoughts were linked to each other's'.

Just as the last monsters were being vanquished, Weiss and Jaune arrived. The princess slowed to a halt and observed the slaughter for a brief moment, before noticing how wide-eyed Ruby was. She shook her head and sighed.

"Wow," Jaune managed to say even as he caught his breath. "These guys sure know how to beat up Grimm, huh?"

"Yeeeees…" Ruby pressed her hands to her cheeks. She was actually salivating at the sight before her, much to Weiss' perturbance.

Fortunately, that turned out to be a good thing, as it led to Weiss noticing a lone wolf that was sneaking its way towards them, eyes set on Ruby's back. "Ruby, behind-"

Before Weiss could finish, Ruby turned around and swung with her staff, slamming the creature down to the ground mid-leap. She grinned and clicked the button on her weapon, turning it into a scythe. With a simple spin, she cut off the Grimm's head, and it turned to smoke shortly after.

"Well, color me impressed."

Ruby turned around again. The warriors had finished with the Grimm, and were now approaching them. The commanding girl from before moved ahead of the rest, lowering her shades to the tip of her nose to look Ruby in the eyes. She whistled and leaned her mallet on her shoulders, nodding in appraisal.

"Never seen someone use a scythe before," she said. "Or airbending, for that matter."

Another girl was standing behind her, as if she wanted to hide her presence by using her friend' whole body. She lifted her head for a moment to look over the leader's shoulder. Two long rabbit ears emerged from her hair.

"Are you… the Avatar?" she asked, her voice almost too low to hear. "I mean, no one else can airbend… right?"

"Yeah! I'm the Avatar, sure," Ruby turned her scythe back into a staff and looked away bashfully. "U-uh… Y-you guys… YOU ARE SO AWESOME!"

Both of the warrior girls were taken aback as the redhead started to run around, poking their muscles and weapons incessantly. The one wearing shades appeared amused, while the rabbit was outright terrified.

The remaining warriors stepped near. One of them had deep red skin, and his eyes had a misty quality to them – perhaps he was blind? The other one was huge, standing a head and a half taller than his companion. A sword of proportional size rested on his shoulders and behind his neck.

"Hello," he greeted Weiss and Jaune warmly. "My name is Yatsuhashi. This is Fox," he pointed to his female companions. "Our leader is Coco, and the cute rabbit-eared one is Velvet."

"Nice to meet you!" Jaune responded eagerly, extending his hand for a shake, which Yatsuhashi took gladly.

Weiss barely paid attention to the introduction. Her eyes were fixed on Ruby, Coco and Velvet, and she didn't look too pleased.

After minutes of Ruby running around, Coco at last stopped her, casting a concerned glance at Velvet. She feared the girl would faint if the Avatar continued to toss questions and praise at her.

"Alright, Avatar," Coco said cautiously. "It's nice to meet you. But what's your name?"

"I'm Ruby!" the redhead replied happily. "Oh! Right! We're here to, uh, get supplies and stuff. I guess I'm not good at that business. Weiss?"

The princess shook her head and joined them, any trace of ill-mood gone from her face. "Yes, that's what we're here for," she confirmed. "Does your village have supplies for a moderately-sized crew?"

"Got a ship, eh? Figures, you look rich," Coco smiled. "Yeah, we can sell you whatever you need. Come on, I'll lead you to our village."

Weiss didn't have the time to look offended, as Coco turned and began to walk. Velvet stuck close to her, and Ruby even closer, resuming her endless babbling. Weiss followed them, her face riddled with displeasure.

* * *

Fortunately, Caffeine surpassed every expectation Weiss had conjured for it. It didn't have that big of a population, with not more than two hundred people living in it, but it looked like a very respectable village. Their houses were very well constructed, using materials from the island itself, such as wood from the trees and the stones in the beach. A large marble statue stood in the middle of the town, depicting a young, lithe woman.

"Hey! I recognize that person!" Ruby exclaimed as part of the group stopped in front of the statue. "It's me!"

"Uh, Ruby… Not to rain on your parade or anything, but how can _that_ be _you_?" Jaune asked. He was currently clinging to Yatsuhashis's back, as the large man had offered to carry him once he took notice of the boy's rather… undignified stomach problems.

"Well, it's not _me_. It's one of my past lives," Ruby explained, casting a look at Velvet. "Avatar Ember, right?"

Velvet nodded silently.

"But how can you be her?" Jaune shook his head. "Or, her be you?"

"When the Avatar passes away, his or her spirit moves on to the next in line. Water, earth, fire, air. That's how the cycle goes," Yatsuhashi contributed in his baritone voice. "Avatar Ember was born here a hundred years ago. She loved our coffee so much, she renamed the island after it."

"Oh, so _that's_ why this place is called Caffeine Island!" Jaune exclaimed genially, seemingly forgetting all his confusion regarding Avatar cycles and rebirth.

"Well, we also export a lot of coffee," Yatsuhashi shrugged. "The name makes it easy for buyers to find us."

Meanwhile, Coco and Fox guided Weiss to the village's stores. The princess scanned their wares meticulously, not wanting to waste unnecessary money. She had limited funding, and she had no guaranteed means of replenishing it during their travels.

"You know, I think we can make an exception and give this stuff for free," Coco said casually. "I mean, you _are_ accompanying the Avatar on a mission to save the world. I think your success is more important than a few extra coins for our village."

"Are you serious?" Weiss asked. "I… don't know how to feel about that. It feels like an abuse of the Avatar's status. I know Ruby wouldn't like it."

"This is not an argument," Coco stated seriously. "You're saving the world. Yatsuhashi and Fox will even help carry whatever you take back to your ship. Right, Fox?"

"Of course."

Weiss almost jumped in fright. That was the first time Fox had spoken since they met, and his voice was raspy and deep – if it was because he used it so rarely or it simply was that way, she couldn't tell.

"Alright," Weiss mumbled. "But don't mention it to Ruby."

"Of course. Wouldn't want to ruin the kid's spirit," Coco nodded. "Also, you're staying the night."

"But-"

"You're staying the night. We have room at the inn."

"Well…" Weiss sighed. "I suppose staying _one night_ couldn't hurt…"

* * *

Weiss quickly came to regret her decision, as one night turned into a week. She tried very hard to convince Ruby that they should go, but the younger girl was fascinated by Caffeine Island and its inhabitants.

The redhead would spend all day interacting with the Caffeine Warriors, as they called themselves, learning everything there was to know about their lifestyle, and most importantly, their weapons.

She sparred with all of them. She found Coco's mallet easy to dodge, but her stamina seemed to never run out, so getting a hit in was difficult; Yatsuhashi was an impenetrable wall with his greatsword; Fox was sneaky and fast, frequently catching her off-guard with his dual daggers; and Velvet… she was too cute to hit, and Ruby often let her connect her hits on purpose, just to make sure she stayed comfortable with their sparring.

Jaune tried to spar with them too – and _try_ was as far as he went. He wasn't anywhere near their level of competence, and even Yatsuhashi, with his gentle demeanor, couldn't hide his disappointment when they fought.

The people of Caffeine admired Ruby perhaps as much as she admired them. The kids often asked that she show them her airbending, and the adults liked to tell her stories about Avatar Ember, and also hear what stories she remembered from her other lives.

One fateful day, someone had the brilliant idea to introduce her to their famous exportation product. It was amusing for the first half hour, then horrifying for the rest of the day.

And during all that time, Weiss hardly left her room at the inn, except to get her meals and check on her crew's state. Ruby wished she would join in on the fun she was having, but didn't want to upset her. On the seventh night, though, she couldn't help herself.

Ruby knocked on her companion's door and waited anxiously, standing on the balls of her feet. After a while, Weiss' voice came from inside the room, telling her to come in.

The princess was seated in a chair facing a desk, a scroll laid out before her. Her pen rested nearby, and ink had stained the tip of her fingers. She didn't make eye contact with Ruby, which only made the Avatar more nervous.

"Weiss?" Ruby called hesitantly. "Uhm… I didn't see you at all today. Are you okay?"

"Yes, Ruby," Weiss answered neutrally, picking her pen up again. "I am perfectly fine."

"Are you _sure_? Because you missed a lot of fun," Ruby said, watching with increasing worry as the princess started to scribble again. "Coco showed me a hole full of raccoon-badgers. Jaune challenged Velvet to a juice drinking contest, and he gave up after two cups. Oh, and you should have seen when Fox went and juggled four watermelons at the same-"

" _Ruby_ ," Weiss interrupted icily. "I understand you're having fun, but I have _important_ matters to attend to, such as making sure my people are prepared for when you arrive at their door," she pointed to the scroll. "I also have to explain to them how it will take us three years to get there, since you're going to have us stopping for weeks at every little island we find along the way!"

Ruby stared at her wordlessly, surprised by the harshness in Weiss' voice. The princess could have slapped her, and it would have had the same effect.

Finally, Weiss turned her head to look at her. A moment passed before she pointed at the door with her pen. "Move on, now. Go have fun," she said dismissively. "It's not like you have a world to save, after all."

Ruby bit her lower lip and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her. Her eyes stung with tears. She gripped her cloak and brought it closer to her body, trying to hide herself within its confines.

Inside the room, Weiss stared down at her unfinished message. Her hands shook after the confrontation, and her pen was dropping ink into the paper as consequence.

_Father, I don't yet know how this message will reach your hands, but I will try my earnest and find a way._

_I've met the Avatar. She's a talented airbender, but otherwise, she has a lot to learn about the other elements. That's why I'm taking her to the North Pole, so she can be taught waterbending from the best masters in the world._

_I hope you won't be upset I'm coming back without your…_

She swiped abruptly with her pen, tracing a crude black line across the text, then picked up the scroll and mashed it into a ball. It soon joined a pile of a dozen other discarded messages under the desk.

Weiss took a deep breath, then prepared another blank scroll.

_Father, I don't yet know how this message will reach your hands, but I will try my earnest and find a way…_

* * *

Yang fidgeted anxiously at the prow of her ship as they approached the island. The darkness of the night concealed them, but that didn't matter too much in the long run. It was unlikely that anyone would be watching for approaching ships.

They had heard the news two days ago, when they stopped at an inn at the coast of the Earth Kingdom. Apparently, the Avatar had arrived at Caffeine Island a week ago, and she had yet to leave. Yang didn't lose a minute, ordering her crew to make haste there.

She only hoped she wasn't too late. For all she knew, the Avatar could have left already, or what she had heard was plainly wrong. She didn't put it past Torchwick to spread false information to lead her astray.

"Okay, Dad," she whispered, rubbing her palms against each other in front of her face. "We gotta do this smart. What do you know about this island again?"

"They make some mean coffee," Taiyang answered quickly. She looked at him emotionlessly, to which he just shrugged. "It's been decades since I've been here. The village is right in the center of the island, surrounded by a thick forest. That's probably where the Avatar will be."

"Alright! So we surround the village, I go take the Avatar. When she runs, you and the others will be ready to catch her," Yang said, smiling brilliantly. "See? I'm being patient and clever. Aren't you proud?"

"Hmm. It's an improvement," he tilted his head slightly. "I hope you won't toss fire at the villagers' homes."

"Don't worry. I can restrain myself!"

Taiyang held back a sigh. From the way she kept shifting her weight and hoping up and down, it was obvious she wouldn't be able to keep up that promise. Still, he couldn't alter her demeanor by talking.

Some lessons just have to be learned the hard way.

* * *

Ruby exited the inn with all but her head covered by her cloak. Her eyes were trained on her feet as she walked to the center of the village. It was the dead of the night, but stepping lightly was second nature to her, so she didn't run the risk of waking anyone up.

Avatar Ember's eyes seemed to bore down on her as she stopped in front of the statue. A weird feeling came over Ruby – it was like she was connected to every little piece of the world, yet at the same time, not at all. It brought her memories of something she had read about in the Temple's scrolls: quicksand, which if you were careless enough to step into, would suck you down deeper and deeper the more you struggled, but if you did nothing… well, that wouldn't fix the situation either, now would it?

If only she could figure out why she felt that well. Deep down, she knew why, but putting it to words was difficult. Perhaps Avatar Ember could help her?

She snorted and waved a hand dismissively. She wasn't about to start talking to a statue.

"Hey," a quiet voice sounded behind her. "Ruby?"

Ruby turned around and saw Velvet. Her rabbit ears were folded down on her head, and her legs were trembling slightly. She looked about to run at a moment's notice.

"Velvet," Ruby spoke warmly. "What are you doing out so late?"

"Oh, just taking a walk, you know? I like the air at night," Velvet replied shyly. "W-what about you? You look… uh, troubled?"

"I guess…" the redhead rubbed the back of her neck uneasily. "Weiss is mad at me, and… she's right to be. I've been playing around, when really I should be mastering the four elements and saving the world."

"Oh. That must be… upsetting."

Ruby crossed her arms and looked away. Her thoughts were like a storm. She couldn't pick one out to focus on.

"Do you want to, you know, save the world?"

"What?" Ruby looked at Velvet again. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, _of course_ you want to save the world! But…" Velvet paused, searching for the right words. "Do you feel like you're the right person to do it?"

Ruby stayed silent. She truly didn't know how to answer that question.

"It's okay to be scared," Velvet added nervously. "I'm pretty much scared all the time. If I had to go traveling around the world like you do, I don't know how I would deal emotionally…" Her ears twitched. "Plus, I'm not sure how people outside the island treat my kind."

"They, uh… I don't know either. Sorry," Ruby smiled slightly. "I think you're nice. That should be enough, right?"

"…Yeah," Velvet smiled too. "And I think you're just the Avatar we need."

Ruby squealed and prepared to leap at the girl, wanting to hug her, but suddenly a blast of fire soared between the two of them and struck the base of Ember's statue. Ruby spun around and saw Yang Xiao-Long walking towards her, hands drenched in flames and with a smile on her lips.

"Correction," the firebender spoke singingly. "You're the Avatar _I_ need. Come on, let's make this easy. Just let me take you to my ship. I'm not gonna hurt you."

"Nope! Not gonna do that!" Ruby replied hastily.

"Seriously? You want to fight?" Yang rolled her eyes. "You don't even have your staff with you."

Ruby started to take a fighting stance, but Velvet pushed her back with an arm and put herself between her and Yang. All traces of shyness were gone, replaced by a resolute fury.

"You're not touching her."

Yang raised an eyebrow at Velvet, but didn't lower her flaming fists.

"Velvet, don't," Ruby whispered. "I can hold her off. Get the others and my staff."

Velvet stood her ground for a moment, then nodded and sprinted to the inn.

"Alright, now that the bunny is gone," Yang's eyes narrowed. "Come over here!"

She swung with her right fist, sending a fireball in Ruby's direction. The redhead yelled and jumped over it, then bent the air beneath her to soar even higher, until she was standing on top of Avatar Ember's shoulder.

"Get back here, you little pest!" Yang screamed at her. "Don't make me knock you down!"

"Bleh!" Ruby stuck her tongue out tauntingly. "You can't get me!"

Yang launched another fireball, but missed narrowly. The projectile exploded on Ember's face, and once the smoke cleared, it was revealed that part of the statue was ruined.

"Hey! You burned my face!" Ruby protested. "Rude!"

"Yeah, and I'm only getting started!" Yang yelled.

The door of the inn swung open, and Jaune stepped out, accompanied by Velvet. He yelled a warning before tossing Ruby's staff in her general direction. The airbender dove from the statue and caught her weapon midway through her descent, rolling on the ground to soften the impact. Using the momentum she had built, she swung with the staff, launching a wave of air at Yang.

The firebender steadied her stance and managed to stay on her feet, yet that was long enough for Ruby and Jaune to make a run to edge of the town. Yang laughed victoriously as her soldiers appeared on the forest, swinging their weapons at the Avatar and her friend, who were forced back into the village.

"Not fair!" Ruby pouted.

"Come on, guys!" Yang called. "Get her!"

A dozen soldiers broke from the woods and chased after Ruby and Jaune. The Avatar jumped to a rooftop, but Jaune was limited to running like a madman, barely avoiding the length of his chasers' spears.

" _Really_ notfair!" he yelled.

"Yeah?!" Coco's voice echoed through the town. "How's _this_ for not fair?!"

She raced past Jaune and engaged the soldiers, sending two of them sprawling to the ground with her mallet. Before the others could react, Yatsuhashi, Fox and Velvet joined her, quickly setting the fight in their favor.

"Ruby!" Coco exclaimed. "Make a run for it!"

The redhead nodded and jumped off the rooftop, but as she fell, a fiery blast struck her legs, and she fell to the ground in a daze. Yang smiled and marched towards her, one fist raised threateningly.

Ruby struggled to her feet, but she was seeing stars – she had probably hit her head when she had fallen. She wobbled from left to right, trying to get a bearing of her surroundings, but it was a futile effort.

"Well, this was as easy as I expected," Yang said smugly.

"Watch your words."

Weiss stepped in front of Ruby, direction a fierce expression at Yang. She held her rapier elegantly in one hand, while she flexed her fingers with the other, searching for a nearby source of water to bend.

"Another step, and I'll be forced to take action," she warned.

"Oooh. How scary," Yang smiled. "What are you going to do? Send some drizzle at me?"

Weiss' expression didn't falter, but she took a step back. Yang was right – she had neither the skill nor the resources to fight the firebender off. So she took the next logical step and wrapped her free arm around Ruby's waist and ran off, for once glad that the Avatar was such a small person.

Yang yelled in frustration and shot a fireball in the waterbender's direction, but it missed by a large margin and struck the house behind her. Yang's eyes widened in regret and terror as the wooden building was quickly set aflame and a family ran out of it, screaming in panic.

"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed. "I didn't mean to do that!"

Something heavy hit the back of her head. She fell to the ground, then rolled around and saw Coco standing above her with a furious expression on her face.

"Right, jerk. That was totally an accident," the Caffeine Warrior scoffed. "Gather your people and leave, or I'm gonna have to leave a permanent mark of my foot on your butt."

Yang stood and looked around. The Avatar and her companions were running out of the village, and her men were ready to give chase.

"Stop!" she yelled, and once they were all looking at her, she sighed and gestured in defeat. "…We're done here."

* * *

Ruby, Weiss and Jaune arrived at the shore without further complications, as Yang had not given chase. The Fire Nation battleship was docked there, near Weiss' own ship. A small number of soldiers blocked their way, but Ruby easily knocked them aside with a gust of wind.

"Captain Port!" Weiss yelled as they ran up the ramp to her ship. "Are you alright?!"

The captain's cabin's door swung open, and out stepped Taiyang. He had a delicious-looking donut in one hand, and his lips were coated with sugar.

"Well," he said. "This is awkward. Now, let's all calm down… I'm sure we can reach an agreement where-"

"Ruby, get him off my ship!" Weiss interrupted.

Ruby yelled and swung her staff, sending the general flying off the ship and down into the water. Weiss ran into the captain's cabin and found Port and most of his men tied up in ropes. She slashed expertly with her rapier, setting them free one at a time.

"Captain, prepare for departure!" she ordered. "We need to get far away from here as fast as possible!"

"Wait!" Ruby yelled. "What about Velvet and the Caffeine Warriors?!"

"They'll be okay!" Weiss exclaimed. "Jaune, search the ship for the rest of the crew! Yell if you find any soldiers!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Jaune nodded and ran off, drawing his sword in preparation.

Ruby gulped and walked to the prow as the sailors rushed around her, drawing the boarding ramp back up and preparing the ship for movement. Her eyes were fixed on the center of the forest in the distance, where a trail of smoke rose to the sky.

The smell of ashes wasn't easy to ignore.

* * *

The Avatar was gone in a matter of minutes.

Taiyang swam to the beach and sat down on the sand, taking deep breaths in and out to warm himself up. With a little firebending skill, he managed to dry his clothes. Unfortunately, he couldn't do the same to his donut – it was ruined beyond repair.

He wasn't upset, but he knew Yang would be. It would be difficult to explain how he hadn't stopped the Avatar from escaping… but it wasn't as if he had a choice in the matter. Hopefully, she would forgive him.

Finally, she arrived, accompanied by her men. Yang cast one look at him, and, to his surprise, just sighed. "She got away?"

"Yeah," Taiyang shrugged. "Sorry, sweetheart. We'll have better luck next time."

Yang wrapped her arms around her chest. "I hope so…"

* * *

Weiss put a hand in front of her mouth as she yawned. The sun was rising on the horizon, painting the ocean in a gorgeous orange color. The sky was clear of clouds, and birds soared around joyfully.

Yet something felt awfully off to her, like something was missing…

She rubbed her eyes and stepped into the deck. Everyone else was still sleeping, even the captain. The excitement of the previous night had been too much for them, and they all deserved a good rest. But Weiss wasn't the type to lay around in bed all day, even if she truly had no important matters to attend to.

Weiss took a breath of the salty air and walked to the prow. There, she finally realized what was wrong. Ruby was on the floor, leaning back against the railings of the ship, dark rings surrounding her eyes. Weiss crouched in front of her with obvious concern.

"Ruby?" she asked softly. "What are you doing?"

"Huh?" Ruby blinked, seeming to only then notice her presence. "N-nothing. Just… watching…"

"Watching…? What do you mean?" Weiss pressed further.

"Yang. She could catch up any moment now…" Ruby explained tiredly. "I played around too much, and that got Caffeine Island and its people in trouble. I'm not letting that happen ever again!"

Weiss shook her head slowly. Guilt washed over her – she knew immediately that she was the main reason for Ruby's change in attitude, and while she was glad the Avatar wanted to act more seriously… she had never intended for her words to have such a deep effect on the girl.

"Ruby, it's okay if you want to have fun. You can't act like the Avatar all the time. It's not healthy," she said. "I'm sorry I was harsh with you. I guess I'm… not used to being around someone like you, that's all."

Ruby just stared at her, not understanding what she meant by that.

"I'm not a fun person," Weiss summarized.

"Weiss! Don't say stuff like that!" Ruby smiled slightly, her usual joy returning to her eyes. "I'm sure you could be fun if you tried to."

"Hmm. You didn't exactly say I was wrong," Weiss stood up. "Come on. You need to sleep in a proper bed."

"Uuurgh…" Ruby fell on her side. "Carry me!'

Weiss stared in disbelief, not knowing what to do. She would never, ever, carry anyone to their bed – not even the Avatar! …But she couldn't very well leave the girl lying on the ground…

A loud snore broke her away from her conundrum. Weiss couldn't help but be amazed as she noticed Ruby had actually fallen asleep right there, in a matter of seconds.

"You…" Weiss gulped. She hurriedly bent down and tucked at the sleeping girl's cloak, covering her with it so she would be warmer, then straightened her posture. "There you go. That should be enough."

She cleared her throat and walked away as if nothing had happened, failing to notice as Ruby smiled and opened one eye to watch her go.


	5. The Hammer of the Earth

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Five: The Hammer of the Earth**

* * *

 "I will play… the Flying Armadillo-Fish!"

Jaune looked down dubiously at the card Ruby had just slammed down on the table between them.

"Ruby, that's the Flying Bison, not the Flying Armadillo-Fish."

"What?" Ruby leered at the card, as if the wrong move she had made was all its fault, and not hers. "That's just dumb. Everyone knows flying bison don't exist."

"They don't?" Jaune crossed his arms. "Hey, Weiss! Do flying bison exist?!"

The princess slowly lowered her spyglass and left her place at the prow of the ship to stand beside their table. She looked down at their cards with an expression that ranged somewhere between annoyance and disapproval. Suddenly, Jaune was regretting calling her attention to the game.

"Flying bison went extinct centuries ago, just like the dragons," Weiss informed neutrally. "I can't believe you two are still playing this game. You bought it a week ago, and every single hour of every single day, you're at it," she pointed at Ruby's last played card. "Honestly, the game barely makes sense, if any."

"It makes complete sense!" Jaune pointed at one of the cards in front of him. "See this Ruthless Firebender? He has 8 attack value – that's the yellow sphere, by the way – and 2 health value. He's great, especially because he only costs-"

"Sure, sure. Whatever keeps Ruby from diving into the ocean… _again_ ," Weiss glared at the redhead, who just smiled at her like an innocent little kid. "We'll be stopping by a port town in a couple of hours to get some food and stretch ours legs on firm soil. Ruby, we can spend _one day_ there, at most. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Ruby stood up and saluted the princess with the most serious expression she could muster.

Weiss nodded approvingly and started towards the captain's cabin, but stopped briefly to peer over the Avatar's shoulder and the cards she held.

"Don't waste that Water Whip card on Jaune's Ruthless Firebender. Just take him down with your Flying Byson. Its special trait will protect it from the first instance of damage it takes on your turn," she whispered. "Also, get that Magma Bender out of your deck. It's utter trash."

Weiss cleared her throat and walked away. Jaune stared in puzzlement at Ruby's wide eyes.

"What just happened?" he asked.

"Uh…" Ruby laughed nervously. "Weiss was just telling me… not to dive into the ocean! Yeah, that was what she said!"

"That sounds like a Weiss thing to say," Jaune shrugged. "It's still your turn, by the way."

"Alright…" Ruby looked at her cards. "I attack your Ruthless Firebender… with my Flying Bison! It takes no damage, while your minion is defeated! Hah!"

"No! I was hoping you wouldn't catch that," Jaune groaned. "When did you get so good at this game?"

Ruby leaned back on her chair, grinning. "Avatar smarts."

* * *

 As predicted, they arrived at their destination shortly. Captain Port docked at a pier amongst many other ships – all merchants and no Fire Nation, thankfully. They disembarked, and Ruby was immediately awestruck by the sight of the village before her.

She had seen precious few people in her life, and now, there were dozens, if not hundreds, walking along the shore, carrying boxes full of merchandise or tending to their chores. It was a tad too dizzying for her, she had to admit.

"I didn't know there would be so many people here." Ruby said, keeping her voice even in spite of her nerves.

"Patch is the largest center of commerce in southern Earth Kingdom soil, so this isn't unexpected," Weiss noted. "I visited this place once, on my way to the South Pole when I was young. Even then, there were a lot of merchants and travelers. We should blend right in."

"What about the Fire Nation?" Ruby looked around guardedly.

"Patch isn't under their _protection_ , as far as I know," Weiss said. "I wonder why. The Fire Lord should love the idea of having it under her thumb. She could cut off Earth Kingdom supplies, exert even more pressure on the surrounding villages…"

Ruby tuned the princess's words out and walked further into the village. It wasn't like she didn't care about the Fire Nation's wrongs, she just… didn't particularly enjoy hearing about them. She had enough pressure on her shoulders without learning about every threatened town in the world.

Luckily for her, Jaune appeared by her side just in time, providing a cheerful distraction. He seemed just as nervous as she was, but the sword on his hip made him look more imposing and powerful – at least to her eyes, that is.

"So, what do we do?" he asked over the loud noise of the passersby.

" _We_ do nothing," Weiss raised an eyebrow at him. "I will buy our supplies. Meanwhile, you two can have… fun…"

Ruby leaned towards her slightly, inspecting Weiss' face more closely. That last phrase came out a tad too strained, as if it pained Weiss to say the word _fun_.

"Can't I come along?" Ruby asked. "I want to buy stuff!"

"Absolutely not," Weiss said sternly. "This is important. It's a matter of life and death! The last thing we need is for you to spend our limited funding on childish card games."

"It's not childish! It's strategic!" Ruby pouted. " _Please_? Come _on_ , Weiss, I'm the Avatar! Shouldn't I learn how to haggle for better prices? That's an important skill for anyone to have!"

"I don't know where you got that idea. And I don't haggle," Weiss said, but Ruby kept pouting and staring at her. After a few seconds, the princess sighed and gestured dismissively with a hand. "Fine. You can come along. But _I'll_ handle the money."

"Yay!"

The two girls walked away, Ruby sporting a vibrant expression, the complete opposite of Weiss'.

Jaune looked around, clueless as to what to do. He doubted Weiss would allow him to come along too. But what sort of fun could he have without Ruby?

He turned to the lively town and cocked his head curiously. Well, there was a whole new world for him to explore. Surely, he could find something to do.

* * *

 Unfortunately, the world turned out to be a pretty confusing place to explore. There were so many kinds of people on the streets of Patch, Jaune found it difficult to understand who they were and what they did.

How did such a large village sustain so many people? Did they go fishing every day? Maybe they had farms? That would be interesting. It was absolutely impossible to grow anything on the South Pole, so a farm was something strange to him.

And what about the Grimm? He imagined that amount of people living so close together in one fixed place would attract a _lot_ of the monsters. Weiss had said the Fire Nation didn't protect Patch, so perhaps they had their own soldiers.

After a while, his musings were interrupted by a rumbling noise, followed by a slight shake in the ground beneath his feet. Jaune wobbled dangerously and looked around. He'd wandered to the other side of Patch without even noticing. Hopefully he would be able to find his way back to the docks.

The ground shook again, and this time, someone yelled nearby. Jaune looked up and noticed a girl standing on the rooftop of a house, holding a huge hammer with both hands. She had strange orange hair and freckles dotted her cheeks, but her most striking feature was the wide, almost maniacal smile on her lips.

"Hey!" Jaune put his hands around his mouth and yelled up at her. "Are you okay?!"

She swung with her hammer and hit a big piece of rock. Why that was on a rooftop in the first place, Jaune didn't have time to ask, as chunks of the hard material came raining down on him. He screamed and dove to the side, falling on the ground roughly, but out of harm's way at least.

The girl dropped from the roof beside him and bent over, hands on her hips. "Sorry! Didn't see ya there!" she yelled so loud, his ears hurt a little. "You okay?!"

"Yeah, yeah! I'm… I'm tough!" Jaune cleared his throat and stood up.

"Your clothes are weird. But, then again, all South Pole guys dress weird. _You're_ weird," she said nonchalantly. "I'm Nora, by the way! Nice to meet you!"

"Uh… Thanks. I'm Jaune," he gulped nervously. "What were you doing on that rooftop?"

Nora's eyes lit up, as if she had been waiting for that question all along. She turned him towards the house and pointed at the rooftop. The rock was still there, ragged and broken.

"I was… sculpting!" she exclaimed happily. "Do you like my duck?"

"That's… a duck?" Jaune frowned. "Sorry, it just looks like a rock to me. A really weird rock, though, if that's any comfort."

"Rude!" Nora pushed him slightly, then tilted her head in wonder as she looked at her work of art again. "It does look like a really weird rock. You have a good eye for sculptures, Jaune!"

She set her hammer behind her back and raised her hands with her palms facing upwards. The rock shook slightly, floated up, then gently lowered to the ground beside her.

Jaune's jaw dropped, and he had to muster all his strength to not go into a Ruby-like state of excitement. "You're an earthbender?!"

"Yep," Nora smiled proudly. "Only one in town, too, so I'm one-of-a-kind!"

"That's so _awesome_!" he exclaimed. "Are you a master?"

"Yeah, sure! I mean, I _am_ the greatest warrior this town has for protection against the Grimm _and_ the Fire Nation," she leaned her hammer on her shoulder arrogantly. "Want me to show you some cool bending stuff?"

The only answer Jaune managed to get out was a little joyful squeal.

* * *

 "And this should be everything," Weiss said contently, holding two bags full of supplies on her arms. "Now, to see how the dolt botched a simple commercial transaction…"

She stepped out of the store she had shopped in and looked around. Ruby appeared beside her with a wide smile on her lips, almost as if she had been waiting for the princess for a while now.

"So," Weiss pursed her lips in trepidation. "How did it go?"

"I did it, Weiss!" Ruby raised her hands and showed her an apple. "I bought a red fruity-thing, and received change too!"

"That's, Ruby, is what we call an apple," Weiss informed with a hint of amusement. "Show me the change."

Ruby fished under her cloak, then held out a pile of coins. Weiss inspected them quietly, then nodded. "I'm impressed. That's the correct amount of money you should have received," she said. "Your self-reliance has earned you this apple."

"Yay!" Ruby stared down at the apple as if it was something from another planet. "Red fruity-thing, you are mine!"

" _Apple_." Weiss repeated, but Ruby just shrugged and took a bite of the fruit.

As the Avatar enjoyed her newly-discovered food, Weiss inspected her own bags, just to make sure she hadn't made any wrong purchases. She doubted that could happen – she was very, very meticulous when she shopped – but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Unfortunately, she didn't notice Ruby was also inspecting the bags until it was too late.

"Weiss…" the redhead slowly distanced her apple from her mouth. "Is that a… _Bending: the Convocation_ booster pack?"

"N-no!" Weiss shook her head fervently and took a step back. "I-it's just a candy bar!"

"I'm _pretty sure_ that was a booster pack," Ruby's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Or three."

"No! Stop your mindless suggestions, you dolt!" Weiss scoffed. "As if I would ever waste our money on a childish card game."

"It's _strategic_!"

Weiss lifted her chin and looked away. She couldn't very well say she agreed, now could she? It would be hard enough already to convince Ruby she had _not_ seen any booster packs…

At least she had seen only a third of them.

"We should find Jaune," Weiss said, wanting to change the topic as soon as possible. "He might have been devoured by Grimm, or fallen down a well."

"Oh, come on, Weiss!" Ruby put her hands on her hips. "As if that would ever happen to him!"

Weiss just stared at her in silence.

"Yeah…" Ruby sighed. "We should probably go rescue him."

* * *

 Jaune was not disappointed by Nora's earthbending abilities. Over the course of an hour, she demonstrated to him how she could lift rocks as big as her size, raise towers of stone from the ground, make a rocky body-armor for herself…

Jaune had hardly seen any bending in his life. Back at home, he would sometimes catch glimpses of Weiss trying to waterbend, but she rarely did it in public… and, though he wouldn't dare say it out loud, it had always turned out kind of disappointing because of her inexperience. Now, seeing a proficient bender like Nora at work was simply amazing.

"And that's how you earth-skate!" Nora exclaimed happily as she finished her latest demonstration. "Any questions?"

"Yes, actually," Jaune said. "If you can earthbend so well, why do you have a giant hammer?"

"Why would I _not_ have a giant hammer?" Nora posed, dead serious all of sudden.

"Oh," Jaune blinked. "That's a good point, I guess."

She leaned her hammer on her shoulder and hummed happily, tapping one foot rhythmically on the ground, which caused pebbles rise and fall along to the movement.

"You're really awesome, Nora," Jaune said. "Did you say you protected this town all by yourself or something?"

"Not by myself. Lots of people volunteer as guards too, but they're boring non-benders," Nora shrugged. "I do most of the work."

"Oh, that's… that's cool." he crossed his arms self-consciously, looking at the sword on his hip.

"I mean, not that you're not cool! You're great, with your… slashy thing! Right?" Nora offered him a wide smile. "You'd make a great soldier, I'm sure. Speaking of…"

She shielded her eyes with one hand and peered at the horizon. Jaune followed her line of sight and saw a dozen soldiers running towards the town, lifting a cloud of dirt behind them. They looked absolutely terrified, which made Jaune worry, but Nora was still smiling as widely as before, so perhaps they were always like that?

"Is that normal?" Jaune asked quietly. "It doesn't seem healthy to run with so much armor on."

"Eh. I'm sure they're fine," Nora snorted.

Five large rhinos appeared behind the soldiers, all mounted by men wearing Fire Nation uniforms.

"Alright, maybe you have a point," Nora said. " _That_ doesn't look too healthy."

"S-should we help them?" Jaune looked from her to the rhinos nervously.

"Uhm… You stay right here, Jaune," she patted his head once and began to walk away. "I'll take care of this mess."

She ran towards the soldiers, gripping her hammer with both her hands. Fire streaked around her, and twice she had to form rocky walls to protect herself from harm. Finally, her fellow townspeople ran past her and skidded to a halt, hugging each other like scared little children.

Nora grunted and swung her hammer upwards. The ground shook beneath her, then rose up in a spire, until she was standing at twice the rhinos' size. Once she was done, she took a deep breath, then bellowed at the top of her lungs…

For three minutes and forty-seven seconds, give or take. Jaune started to count only fifteen seconds into the shout.

"You!" she pointed at the firebenders. "What are you doing, you jerk-faced, mammoth-furred, red-nosed, wrinkly-eyed buffoons?!"

"Uh…" one of the Fire Nation men rubbed the back of his neck uneasily. "Kidnapping your neighbors to pressure you into giving up the rights to your home so our nation can grow richer and more powerful? I guess?"

"Well, I ain't having any of that!" Nora jumped from the spire and plummeted down, bringing her hammer up and over her head. "Prepare to be _obliterated_!"

The kidnappers had enough foresight to separate in time. As Nora came crashing down to the ground, they set their rhinos into a frenzied pace, three circling around her, the remaining two racing to her still sniveling townspeople.

"Not on my watch!" Nora yelled and threw a stone at one of her foes, who just barely managed to knock it away with a blast before it hit his head.

"Rude!"

" _You're_ rude!"

Nora growled angrily and slammed the ground with her hammer, making a huge chunk of it rise up beneath one of the rhinos, which went flying along with its rider. She tried to run towards her friends, but the remaining firebenders blocked her path and started to fling more fire at her.

Meanwhile, all Jaune could do was watch as the soldiers of Patch were snatched up by the firebenders. If it weren't for the very stressful situation he was in, he would question how such a large group of adult men and women could devolve into such defenseless babies. As it was, he was more worried about himself.

But… he couldn't just stand by and let this happen!

With a courageous shout, Jaune drew his sword and ran at one of the rhinos. He jumped up, intending to slash at its rider, but the woman just extended her hand and grabbed him by his shirt, then deposited him behind her with the rest of her victims.

"Hey!" she exclaimed joyfully to her partner. "Got one more!"

"Nice!" the other firebender gave her a thumbs-up. "Let's get out of here!"

"Yoo-hoo!"

The two rhinos raced off, moving past the ones still engaged at battle with Nora. The earthbender was breathing raggedly as she used all her strength to swing with her hammer, her orange hair falling in front of her eyes. She looked like a madwoman, and an earth-shattering one at that.

"Dude, can we just get out of here?" one of the firebenders whispered. "Like, this chick is really creeping me out right now."

"What about David on top of that tree?" The other gestured to their companion and his rhino above them.

"Man, who cares about freaking _David_? We don't like him anyways."

"Yeah, you've got a point. Let's leave him behind!"

They whipped their rhinos and ran away, and all Nora could do was shake her hammer and shout angrily at them. Before long, the soldiers were gone, taking her friends and allies with them.

* * *

 "Weiss, I've checked all the wells in Patch," Ruby said dutifully as she rejoined Weiss in the town square. "None of them had Jaune."

"Did you check _all_ of them?" The princess crossed her arms testily.

Ruby shook her head slowly with a sad look on her eyes. Weiss sighed and looked around. She hadn't actually expected Ruby to find Jaune in a well, but what else could they do? The oaf wasn't at the ship, or the local inn, or any of the shops in town. It was as if he had vanished from the face of Remnant.

She had often thought an occasion like this would bring her happiness and relief. While Jaune wasn't an active bother to her, he was… pretty much worthless. He had a sword, but he didn't know to fight. He could barely run for ten seconds without tripping on him own feet. Worst of all, once upon a time, he had had a crush on her.

A slap to the face and a half-hour tirade had fixed that problem.

Nevertheless, Weiss couldn't leave him behind – wherever he was. Like it or not, Jaune was as much Water Tribe as she was. Princess or peasant, southerner or northerner… they were from the same people. It was her duty to save him.

Also, without him, Ruby would focus on her one hundred percent of the time, instead of the barely manageable fifty. Just the thought of that almost reduced Weiss to a shivering husk of herself.

"Do you think they have wells undergrounds?" Ruby interrupted her thoughts. "I don't know how Jaune would fall down one of those, _but_ …"

"Patch doesn't have any kind of underground constructions," Weiss interjected. "Perhaps he got stuck inside a chimney?"

"Weiss! I think that's a good line of thought!" the Avatar beamed. "I'll go and check every-"

"Ruby, no! You can't just fly to people's roof and mess with their chimneys!" Weiss shrieked.

"Why not?" Ruby put her hands on her hips stubbornly.

"Because… because… it's culturally insensitive!"

Ruby gasped and hugged her staff. " _Oh no_. That would have been very bad, then!"

Even with that chimney-crisis averted, Weiss knew she had to come up with another plan before Ruby got impatient. She could tell the redhead was barely holding herself together, no doubt worried about her friend's safety.

"Yo! All peeps of Patch! Listen to me!" A voice boomed through the town square, and the ground shook slightly. "We have an emergency!"

A girl appeared above them, standing on top of a tall rock spire. Ruby looked up at her in wonder, recognizing her as an earthbender. Weiss was less enthusiastic. She held Ruby's wrist, just to make sure she wouldn't run off and tackle the girl down.

"Hey, Nora," a female vendor sighed. "What did you do this time?"

"You didn't drag your rocks to my roof again, did you?!" a man shouted angrily.

"No! I mean, yes, but that's not important right now," Nora giggled mischievously before assuming a serious expression again. "Today's guards went on a patrol, and when they returned, they were being chased by firebenders! I tried to save them, but there were too many! They kidnapped everyone!"

A few seconds of silence passed, then all of the townspeople began to run around, screaming in anger and panic. Nora cleared her throat.

"Also, does anyone own a Jaune?" she asked loudly. "Because I'm pretty sure he was kidnapped too."

Ruby weaseled out of Weiss' hold and jumped to join Nora, nearly tackling her to the ground. A vein throbbed in Weiss' forehead as she walked over to her companion and the earthbender.

"Wow, who are you?!" Nora screamed. "And how did you jump so high?!"

"I'm Ruby! An airbender! Also the Avatar!" Ruby shook her by the collar of her shirt. "Where's Jaune?!"

"The firebenders have a camp close to the town. I'm pretty sure they took him and everyone else there," Nora blinked twice. "Wait, did you just say you're the-"

"Let's go, Weiss!" Ruby jumped to her feet and grabbed the princess by the wrist. "To rescue Jaune!"

Weiss slapped Ruby's hand repeatedly until she let go.

"Wait, you dolt! We don't even know where that camp is," she said exasperatedly, then looked down at Nora. "You're Nora, right? You can guide us there? We'll help you rescue your people."

"Oh, thanks!" Nora got up with a big smile on her lips. "Can you fight?"

"I… I can waterbend," Weiss stated softly. "…Kind of."

"Girl. Trust me on this…" Ruby slammed her staff on the ground. "We can fight."

* * *

 Being kept prisoner at a Fire Nation camp was bad, but not as bad as Jaune had previously thought.

Yes, him and a dozen people from Patch were all thrown in one cage, and, yes, the firebenders were pretty scary, but at least they had food. Some kind of green earthworm soup, but still food. It was also a great opportunity for everyone to get some difficult things out their chests.

"I mean, she didn't even say goodbye," one of the male guards, Ricky, sniffed into his sleeve. "She just went away, and all because of that darned Rick! I mean, why did she think he's better than me?! Just because his name is shorter than mine?!"

"Hey, man, your name is pretty sweet."

"Yeah, dude, don't be down like that."

"Nobody liked Rick anyway."

Jaune had never known life in the Earth Kingdom was so filled with drama. Ricky was the fifth in line to tell his story, but before him? Lee's bout with three killer grandmas had been very compelling, and Jaune nearly teared up when Lily narrated her third (and a half) divorce.

Still, he could only be entertained for so long. As time passed and the sun descended in the sky, he began to grow truly worried about his fate. Surely, something was bound to happen? The firebenders wouldn't keep them locked up forever. They had to free them _sometime_.

And where were Ruby and Weiss?

"Hey, kid," he was brought back to the conversation by Ricky. "You look really pasty. Wanna share with the group?"

"Uh, n-no," Jaune shook his head. "I'm okay, thanks."

"It looks like you're about to throw up," Lee crossed his arms. "Smells like it too."

"Alright," Jaune sighed. "I'm worried about my friends. I thought they would have arrived already."

"Friends, kid?" Lily questioned. "What friends?"

Jaune looked down at his feet. "It doesn't matter," he said. "They've probably left by now. Getting Ruby a waterbending teacher is more important than rescuing me."

The circle of prisoners traded several looks, then shrugged collectively and focused again on Lou's tale of how he had accidentally burned down his grandfather's bakery.

Jaune looked out the cage and sighed.

* * *

 By the time they got to the camp, the sun was setting, casting an orange glow on the area. Weiss examined the landscape studiously. A few large tents were scattered along the ground, and in the middle of them was the cage holding the prisoners. A small stream circled the northern side, close to where they stood.

If push came to shove, she could use that to her advantage. But Ruby and her had already agreed to talk with the firebenders first, to try to arrange a peaceful deal. It had been difficult to get Nora to understand that plan, but after some time, she began to-

" _ATTACK!_ " Nora bellowed and ran out of the woods, shaking her hammer above her head.

"What!" Weiss exclaimed in disbelief. She looked to her right. "Ruby?"

"Uhm…" The Avatar stood still for a moment, then ran after their ally. "Attack!"

Nora's initial battle cry alerted the firebenders, drawing them out of their tents. A volley of fireballs descended on Nora and Ruby, but the former lifted a wall of stone in front of them and continued forward, dragging it along with her for protection.

Ruby jumped on Nora's head and once again over the wall, swinging her staff. A rush of air knocked half of the firebenders down, while the rest struggled to keep on their feet. Nora took advantage of their moment of vulnerability and began to launch rocks at them, knocking them down one by one.

Meanwhile, Weiss skirted around the camp, trying to remain unseen while her allies kept the firebenders occupied. If she were lucky, she could probably make it to the cage and free the prisoners, and no one would realize it.

Luck wasn't on her side, though, as one late firebender exited his tent and caught sight of her, then yelled for his companions' assistance. Two others broke from the main fight and joined him as he edged towards her, fists aflame.

"I'm warning you," Weiss took a step back, getting closer to the stream behind her. "You don't want to fight me."

One of the firebenders grinned and launched a fireball at her, but she sidestepped and spun around, stretching her arms at her sides. A thick line of water flowed up from the river and struck her attacker like a whip, knocking him down.

Before the others could react, Weiss gestured with her hands, and the watery line separated in two and brought them down simultaneously. She jumped over them and ran towards the cage, throwing all caution to the wind.

"Lady!" one of the soldiers screamed happily. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! We're starving! We've been here for days!"

"Oh, shut up, Ricky," one of the women sighed. "You're making us look like fools."

"Weiss!" Jaune stood up and grabbed the bars of the cage. "You've gotta let us out of here! Do you have the key?"

Weiss looked down at the cage's lock and frowned. The key was most probably with the captain, and she had no clue who that was. A more creative solution would be needed.

She took a deep breath and leaned down, then blew on the lock until she was out of air. Nothing happened, and the prisoners started to murmur and, to her fury, giggle. Weiss' cheeks reddened, and she blew again, harder this time.

The lock became encased in a layer of ice. Weiss exclaimed victoriously and slammed her rapier's pommel on it, breaking it. The soldiers exited all at once, shouting in relief, then immediately made a run for it… except for Jaune, who walked out slowly.

"Hey, Weiss," he muttered. "Sorry for getting myself kidnapped and putting your mission at risk."

"You should be sorry," Weiss said, then smiled slightly. "You meant _our_ mission, correct? I couldn't very well leave you behind, now could I?"

Jaune's eyes widened in surprise. The princess groaned inward and opened her mouth to tell him not to make a big deal out of her words, but suddenly, he pushed her aside and drew his sword… and brought it upward, knocking a Fire Nation soldier's blade away mid-swing.

"Hah!" he exclaimed. "Got you!"

The man ran away screaming, thankfully fast enough to miss as Jaune lost his balance and let his sword fall to the ground. Weiss was impressed for a few seconds, then patted him on the back.

"One day, Jaune," she said. "One day."

"Yeah," he picked up his sword and shook his head. "Anyway, where's Ru- Oh."

Weiss followed his line of sight and immediately understood what had caught his attention.

Every Fire Nation soldier was now on the floor, unconscious. The tents were in shreds. Large rocks had formed craters on the ground. Ruby was flying around with her staff victoriously, while Nora stood on top of a rocky structure, screaming at the top of her lungs.

" _I'M THE QUEEN OF THE CASTLE! I'M THE QUEEN OF THE CASTLE!_ "

* * *

 After such an eventful day, not even Ruby wanted to stay in Patch overnight, so they came back to their ship, just after making sure all the prisoners had made it back to the town safely.

Nora accompanied them as they walked to their ship, all the while blabbering about how awesome the trio was – _especially_ Ruby.

"The Avatar! You're the Avatar!"

"Yeah, I'm the Avatar," Ruby groaned. "Just like you said four times already."

"The freaking Avatar!" Nora exclaimed. "You can airbend! Ooh! Can you earthbend too?"

"I can," the redhead shrugged. "I don't know how to, though."

Weiss stopped briefly to look back at the chatting pair.

"Wait. Nora," she said. "Perhaps you could teach her earthbending?"

"Oh. Uh…" For once, Nora didn't sound excited at all. "Jeez. I mean, it would be fun, but I'm not sure I would be a good teacher. I think I would break Ruby."

"Y-yeah!" Ruby nodded vigorously. "I agree! I need someone else to teach me earthbending!"

"Besides, there's this friend I'm waiting for… He's been away for a year or so, visiting some boring temples and stuff," Nora stuck out her tongue. "After that, we're going to travel the world together!"

"That sounds cool!" Jaune noted.

"Not a very good reason to refuse to teach the Avatar, though," Weiss said under her breath.

Finally, they arrived at their ship. Nora waved at the trio as they walked up the ramp to the deck.

"Are you sure you don't wanna come along?" Jaune asked.

"Nah. I'm staying," Nora smiled. "Hey, if you meet a guy named Ren, tell him to hurry up and come back home! He's got quite the nerve, keeping me waiting so long… Stupid wannabe monk."

"Uh, yeah," Jaune said hesitantly. "I'll keep that in mind."

Nora jumped happily twice, then strutted away with a spring on her steps.

Ruby stretched her arms above her head and yawned loudly. "I'm super tired," she muttered. "Wake me up next month. Good night."

She stepped over to Jaune, hugged him quickly, then went inside. Jaune smiled like a dork and looked at Weiss.

"Do I get a good night hug from you too?"

"I will throw you to the sea and leave you there to freeze before that happens," Weiss replied, completely serious. "…Good night."

Jaune gulped as he watched her go inside too. Once she was gone, he eased up again and laid down on the ship's deck, leaning on the railings and joining his hands behind his head.

Today hadn't been half-bad, after all.


	6. Smoke and Flames

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Six: Smoke and Flames**

* * *

 "I can't believe I let you talk me into this."

Yang blew a strand of hair away from her mouth and crossed her arms as a troupe of dancers spun around her in a merry circle, singing and throwing confetti everywhere.

Taiyang sported an expression that opposed hers completely. Yang couldn't remember having ever seen him smiling so widely before. If she weren't so angry with him, she would have found his face hilarious.

"Really, dad," she sighed. "You're supposed to be the mature one. You should be dragging me _away_ from distractions."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I sign a treaty that bound me to that rule or something? I can't recall, honestly," Taiyang shrugged. "Oooh, look at that! Delicious fire crackers!"

" _Dad_!"

Taiyang weaved under the line of dancers and moved to a nearby tent, where a vendor was selling bags of spicy red peanuts. Yang tried to follow, but she was repelled by the dancers and showered with confetti all over her face and hair.

"Hey!" she yelled. "Watch it, you're ruining my hair! Out of the way!"

She lit her hands on fire and raised them above her head threateningly. The dancers dispersed immediately, screaming like little girls. Yang smirked and joined her father, who raised an eyebrow at her.

"Well, look who's happy now," he said with his mouth full. "All it took was bullying some jolly performers who were just working their hardest to earn their daily bread."

"What? I'm not happy," Yang unmade her smile and shook her head firmly. "Buy as many fire crackers as you want, then we'll go back to the ship and resume the chase for the Avatar."

"Ugh. That again? It's always the Avatar with you nowadays," Taiyang groaned. "You see, back in _my_ youth, we didn't have Avatars to chase, but we were happy anyway, with our dancing, and singing, and others things that I am not comfortable discussing with a girl your age."

"Dad, I'm seventeen."

"Exactly!"

Taiyang laid a hand on her back and turned her around so she was facing the rest of the village, which was full of lively festivities. Fires rose high into the sky, cheers and singing filled the air, along with the delicious smell of many exotic foods.

"Listen, Yang," he said seriously. "I know you catching the Avatar means a lot to you. But you can't spend every breath you take obsessing over her. You've got to take the good times the world offers you, or else… what's the point?"

"…Fine," Yang sighed. She eyed his food slyly. "Are those spicy?"

"Not at all."

Yang took one of the crackers and tossed it inside her mouth. She chewed on it for a few seconds, then nearly screamed in agony as smoke came out of her ears.

"Oops," Taiyang smile mischievously. "I think someone is way too gullible…"

* * *

 The sun was shining, the waves were rolling gently, the wind blew a gentle breeze… It was a good day for travelling by sea – an excellent one, if someone were to ask Ruby's opinion. She had grown quite bored of waiting around the ship every day, knowing that meanwhile the majority of the Earth Kingdom went ignored by them. But today…

Today she was happy, and it was obvious to everyone in the ship, because she was constantly jumping around, causing rushes of air and sometimes even knocking people down because of it. She always apologized, of course.

"Sorry, Jaune!" she yelled as she jumped on top of her friend's head to get a boost towards the roof of the captain's cabin.

"It's… fine," Jaune mumbled as he rubbed his sore head. "It's only the fourth time you've done that today."

"Sorry times four!" Ruby screamed gleefully. She shielded her eyes with her hands and peered over the horizon. "Ooh, Jaune, you've gotta see this! It's beautiful! Like, the most beautiful-est day ever!"

Jaune smiled, not being able to resist his friend's undying enthusiasm anymore, even though he felt a nasty headache coming. He was glad Ruby was in such a great mood. Sure, she was never in a _bad_ mood, per say, but sometimes, when she thought he wasn't looking, Jaune could swear she was… sad, or solemn.

He wasn't good at reading people, but he could tell Ruby was hiding something very serious. If only he knew how to approach her about it…

"Jaune, stop standing there like a coconut-head and get up here!" Ruby yelled in frustration, then shook her head fervently. "Sorry! That was mean! Sorry!"

"It's fine, Ruby, it's fine!" Jaune chuckled. "Uh, so, that's kinda high. I don't think I can make the jump. A little help, please?"

"Sure!" Ruby joiner her hands together and prepared a surge of air between them. "Just a moment! I gotta get this right, or you'll go flying right over the edge and fall on the ocean, and we wouldn't want that! Not when we have such a beautiful, relaxing, and completely uneventful day ahead of-"

"Ruby!" Weiss kicked open the door of the captain's cabin open and ran outside. "Inside! It's an emergency!"

Ruby's face soured, but she jumped down to the deck anyway. Instead of going inside as she was told, however, she crossed her arms and stared at Weiss fixedly.

"What?" Ruby asked. "You're ruining our perfect day, Weiss. You should feel bad."

"Ruining it? What are you-" Weiss rolled her eyes, choosing to just ignore the redhead's childish protests. "There's a Fire Nation battleship coming our way. It's waving a white flag – they want to meet with us. Now, it's not Xiao Long's ship, but chances are whoever's in charge of it is also hunting you."

"Well, then… let's wait for them to get close, then we'll kick their butts!" Ruby smiled proudly. "Avatar style!"

"…Jaune, do me a favor," Weiss looked at the blond-haired boy pleadingly. "Take Ruby to her room and keep her distracted for an hour."

Jaune nodded dutifully and grabbed Ruby by the shoulders, then dragged her away while she kicked wildly and screamed about Weiss ruining her day. The princess stood her ground, one eye twitching occasionally.

When Ruby and Jaune were finally gone, she cleared her throat and smoothed out her dress, waiting anxiously for the Fire Nation to catch up to them.

In less than ten minutes, the black and red battleship came to a halt by their side, and its men extended a board between the two ships. Weiss stared guardedly as a man sporting a round black hat and a long metal cane swaggered his way to her ship.

"Greetings, Your Paleness," he bowed briefly, and Weiss felt an immediate dislike to the man. "I am Roman Torchwick, General of the Fire Nation. And you are…?"

"Weiss Schnee, second heiress to the throne of the Northern Water Tribe," she replied evenly. "May I help you with something, General? Did you have a reason for stopping our journey?"

"Your journey? Ah, I suppose you are going back to the north," Roman smiled. "Am I supposing right?"

Weiss tilted her head slightly, her eyes trained seriously on the man in front of her. He chuckled and raised his hands amiably.

"Alright, princess. I see you're the type who likes to get straight to the point," he said. "I have orders from the Fire Lord to hunt down the Avatar and bring her to the capital."

"The Avatar? Why, I had no idea the next one had emerged. That is fortunate news, general," Weiss allowed herself a small smile. "Thank you for sharing that with me."

"Hmm. Fortunate, indeed," Roman thudded his fingers against his cane, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. "I'm surprised you hadn't heard yet. It's the word in every village in the Earth Kingdom. People say she is travelling on a ship under the command of a white-haired girl. Does that ring any bells?"

"Oh, you think it's me?" Weiss joined her hands behind her back and leaned to the side coyly. "Please. I truly had no idea she even existed. You know how people are – they'll latch onto anything if it makes for a good rumor. They probably saw me resupplying on a coastal village and weaved a tale from there. I am not the most common-looking woman after all, now am I?"

"No, you aren't," the general nodded. "Well, since you were not even aware of the Avatar's resurgence, there's no reason for me to take any more of your time."

Weiss held back a relieved sigh as he began to return to his ship. In the middle of his way there, though, he turned around and gave her one last smile.

"If you do see the Avatar, be kind and send word to the Fire Lord – if possible, capture her," Roman said. "Our nations aren't allies, of course, but we aren't enemies either… But how we deal with the Avatar might very well change that."

"I'll keep that in mind," Weiss replied, struggling to keep her composure in the face of his blatant threat. "Safe travels, general."

Weiss watched silently as Roman walked away. As his men pulled back the board between their ships, Weiss signaled subtly to Port on his cabin, and the captain immediately began to turn the ship's motors back on.

She had a feeling – no, she was _certain_ that they needed to get away from Roman Torchwick as fast as possible, or else they would suffer hefty consequences.

* * *

 For an hour, Ruby did her best to stay put while Weiss dealt with whatever was going on above deck, hiding in her room with Jaune, playing cards and chatting about trivial matters. He also could barely sit still, but due to fear, not frustration.

"We can go out now, right?" Ruby looked up at the ceiling with narrowed eyes. "The ship's moving again."

"The Fire Nation might still be up there," Jaune said nervously. "We should wait for Weiss. She'll tell us when it's safe again."

"Ugh, Jaune! We are safe already!" Ruby groaned. "I'm the Avatar, Weiss is a waterbender, you… have your sword… We can take on a few mean firebenders!"

He lifted his hands helplessly as she got up from her bed and grabbed her staff, then rushed away from the room, making the air behind her surge wildly. Ruby almost slammed into some of the sailors as she made her way to the deck, so eager she was to get outside.

Unfortunately, the reception she received was less than spectacular when she finally arrived at the deck.

"Ruby! What are you doing here?!" Weiss hissed and pushed her back inside. "Have you gone completely insane, you dolt? I told you to stay inside!"

"Come on, Weiss! The Fire Nation's gone, right?" Ruby stood on the tip of her toes to peer over her companion's shoulder. "Yep. No firebenders here."

"Of course they aren't here," Weiss shook her head, struggling to keep her temper at bay. She pointed to the horizon, beckoning Ruby to look. "Their battleship is right there, still. They're probably following us. I tried to convince their general I knew nothing about you, but I don't think he believed me entirely," she pinched her forehead and sighed. "Do you know the danger you just put us in? They're probably watching our ship as we speak, Ruby!"

Ruby swallowed dry, for once completely accepting the princess' harsh admonishments. She had almost gotten them into very serious trouble, and all because she couldn't sit still for few hours…

"Sorry, Weiss…" she muttered sadly.

"Humph," Weiss crossed her arms. "At least you understand your mistake. And they don't appear to have seen you… But don't think that means I'll let this pass. Something like this happens one more time, and I'll-"

A whooshing sound reached their ears, and suddenly, they were on the ground as the ship almost turned upside down. Waves vaulted over the prow, soaking them. Ruby coughed and tried to stand, bending the air around her to stabilize her balance.

In the middle of deck was a flaming chunk of rock, embedded halfway down the ship. Smoke and steam swirled around it, making it difficult to see her surroundings.

Ruby felt a hand wrap around her ankle. She looked down and noticed Weiss, breathless but apparently unharmed. Ruby helped her up quickly.

"Did they – Did they fire on us?!" Weiss exclaimed in disbelief. "I can't – Was anyone hurt?"

"I don't think so!" Ruby shouted. "Everyone was inside, right? The deck was empty?"

"Yes!" Weiss replied. "We have to get to the captain. Maybe the motor is intact…"

Weiss grabbed Ruby by the wrist and dragged her through the smoke, relying on her sense of direction to find the captain's cabin. Luckily enough, she managed to do so, and with a fierce pull, she opened the door and walked inside.

Port was on the ground, leaning against a wall with a perplexed expression on his face. Two other men had been helping him before, and they seemed just as shocked at the turn of events befalling them.

"Captain!" Weiss yelled. "Get up! Can you get us away from those lunatics?"

"P-perhaps," Port stood and looked at the damage outside through a window. "That rock might have not penetrated deep enough to damage the motor. But if we don't repair that hole fast, we'll surely sink!"

"How much time do we have?" she asked. "We can't afford to repair this now. I think they want to draw the Avatar out, not sink us, or else they would have tried to overpower us when I was talking to the general. That might be our saving grace… Ignore the damage for now and make a swift getaway."

"It's risky, but possible," Port rubbed his mustache thoughtfully. "We can run for four hours – six, at most. That's when we'll _need_ to stop."

"That's not good enough," Weiss shook her head in frustration. "They'll catch up to us easily. If only we had some way to slow them down… Ruby, what do you – Oh, no way!"

Ruby had run from the cabin, blowing the smoke away from her to make a passage. She sprinted to the edge of the ship and jumped, lifting her staff above her head. She spun it quickly with her fingers, propelling the wind beneath her so she could hover towards the other ship.

Just as she neared the Fire Nation, a soldier swung with his fists and released a barrage of fire in her direction. Ruby squirmed away, but in doing so, she lost her balance and fell down on the deck, surrounded by a dozen ruthless-looking men and women.

"Hey," she looked up and smiled shakily. "N-nice day, huh?"

She jumped just in time to avoid a blast, then spun expertly in midair to dodge the following projectiles that were thrown at her. Ruby swung with her staff and propelled herself backwards, landing a safe distance away from the soldiers.

"Look! You just launched a gigantic, flaming rock at my friend's ship, but I don't wanna fight you!" she yelled. "I'm sure we can find a peaceful way to solve this if we just talk to each other!"

"Huh," one of the soldiers scratched his chin and nodded slightly. "That sounds pretty reasonable, actually."

"Perry! How many times have I told you to keep your mouth shut?" an orange-haired man parted a way through the soldiers and stopped to stand in front of Ruby. "Can't believe how hard it is to get good soldiers these days. Am I right?"

"Uh, I don't know," Ruby blinked. "Perry seems pretty nice."

Perry started to raise his thumbs positively, but one look from his boss had him standing up straight instead, with his arms pressed tightly to his sides.

"So, you're the Avatar," the general tilted his head, smiling easily. "I thought you would be taller."

"Sorry for disappointing you," Ruby said. "My name's Ruby. What's yours?"

"General Roman Torchwick. The pleasure is _all_ mine," he chuckled. "So, you want to talk things out? Okay. You throw that staff away, let me bind your arms, and I'll take you to the Fire Lord. Pretty simple, don't you agree?"

"Look, I know you think I let the world down or something – and maybe I did – but I didn't turn my back on the airbenders. Your people killed _my_ people," Ruby gripped her staff fiercely. "Still, I don't want to fight you. We have a common enemy, the Grimm. They are the real threat."

"Oh, Red. Can I call you Red?" Roman lifted his cane and spun it mindlessly. "You misunderstand me. I don't think you're bad, or that you deserve some punishment. Sure, you hid from your troubles and probably let some thousands of people die, but haven't we all done something like that?"

Ruby almost dropped her staff as the weight of his words struck her. Thousands dead because of her? No way. He was trying to rattle her, make her drop her guard – that was all.

But what if he was right?

"Ooh, sorry. Did I strike a nerve?" Roman whistled. "The point is, Red, I don't really care about who you are. What I _do_ care about is what I'll get when I bring you to the Fire Lord."

"W-what?" Ruby's eyes widened. "You – You want to capture me for some prize?!"

"More or less. It's not exactly a prize, you see," he shrugged. "It's more about power; fame; the Fire Lord's favor… Money too, but I've got plenty of-"

Suddenly, he swung with his cane towards her. Ruby tried to duck underneath it, but she was too slow, and it hit her on the side of her head. She stumbled away, her vision doubling and ears ringing painfully.

Roman threw his cane away and launched a fireball at her, which she clumsily deflected with a spin of her staff while she moved back with shaky steps. He continued to walk towards her while unleashing more fire, which she only barely managed to resist without getting burned.

Finally, her back hit the railings of the ship, halting her retreat. Roman smiled deviously and punched. A wave of fire streaked towards Ruby, and seeing no other way out, she jumped. As she hovered in midair and felt the heat of the blast beneath her, the pain on her head intensified, and she found herself falling on the ocean, unconscious.

Roman stood still for a moment, startled by what had just happened, before he turned to look at his soldiers.

"You! Every one of you! Go get the girl before she drowns!" he ordered, then mumbled under his breath. "I did not sail to the other side of the world for nothing…" His rage grew even worse as he realized half of his men hadn't moved yet. "Go, you brainless animals! Perry! Oh, you're going to regret giving me that look, Perry-"

"S-sir!" Perry squealed in terror. "B-behind you!"

Roman turned around, only to see Ruby at the side of the ship, lifted by a swirling tower of water. Her silver eyes were glowing like beacons, yet he could tell they were fixed on him.

Then, she extended an arm, and a massive wave struck the ship, knocking down everyone on it. Another torrent of water rose from the ocean and came crashing down on the deck, tearing through it savagely. Roman cursed loudly as fire and smoke exploded from the hole.

The next thing he knew, the Avatar was gone, and far in the distance, the Water Tribe princess' ship sailed away fast. He scowled and clenched his fists.

"Well, Red…" he muttered. "The game is on."

* * *

 As it turned out, the festival was rather enjoyable, after all. Many of the attractions reminded Yang of home – the fire jugglers, the dancers in red silk, even the food was from the motherland. Fortunately, that was the part of the Fire Nation Yang liked most.

When she had been very, very young, Yang had entertained the idea of learning some of these arts. She thought she would have made an awesome dancer if she dedicated herself. Her father had been supportive, but her mother shut the whole thing down when word of it reached her ears.

At the time, Yang hadn't understood, but now she did. As the sole heir to the Fire Nation's throne, she couldn't as much as distract herself with thoughts of the carefree life of a dancer. She had to be the embodiment of the power and honor of her people. Anything else was useless, if not harmful.

Still, the festival was fun, and the Fire Lord wasn't anywhere near to berate her. And even her mother would _surely_ understand that everyone needed some time to relax every few weeks.

She had lost track of her father amidst the crowd some time ago, but she wasn't too worried. Knowing Taiyang, he was probably busy stuffing his belly with every different type of food being offered in town. Hopefully, he wouldn't pay for his indulgence later.

"Hey," she called to a vendor that passed by her carrying a tray of fire crackers. "How much do these cost?"

"It's free! Everything's free!" he exclaimed gloriously, his eyes brimming with tears. She couldn't tell if he was moved by the generosity of his prices, or devastated by it.

"Uh, okay. Give me two."

He tossed her two bags, and Yang barely caught them in time. She looked from one of them to the other, wondering how she would eat with both hands full.

"Well, that's a predicament," she mumbled. "Maybe if I-"

A girl rushed past her, a mane of black hair obscuring Yang's vision for a moment. As the stranger hurried away, she turned her head to look over her shoulder, a silent apology written in her amber eyes. Yang blinked and looked down at her hands. One of the bags was missing.

"That scoundrel!" she exclaimed in indignation. "Why would she even bother to steal from me? The food is free!"

"Free!" the vendor yelled somewhere in the crowd, his voice filled with emotion. "Everything's _free_!"

"Well, at least I can eat now." Yang shrugged and started to toss the little crackers into her mouth.

She watched the performers while she ate her food. At first, she was entranced by their movements and techniques, but as the sun set down and the sky turned black, she became aware of time slowly passing by, with her stuck in one place.

Oh, why had she let her father talk her into attending the festival? Now there was no possible way they would catch up to the Avatar! Cold sweat ran down her forehead as she looked around the town, searching desperately for Taiyang so they could get back to their ship and sail away at top speed.

She turned the corner of a street and returned to the main plaza, fists trembling at her sides. She was almost to the point of breathing out fire, so angry she was. Her eyes scanned the crowd one more time, looking for a glimpse of blond hair, but they fixed on something else.

Red, like roses and fire and blood. Yang broke into a run towards the Avatar and tackled her from behind, and both went down, rolling on the ground. The princess yelled triumphantly and straddled her foe, raising her hands above her head and igniting a large fireball-

And noticed two green eyes looking up at her, wavering with fear.

"Oh," Yang put out the fire and got up, offering a hand desperately. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean – I thought-"

The little girl jumped to her feet and ran away, just as a mass of people circled around Yang, glaring daggers at her. The blond firebender gulped and took a step back. She was a stranger and she had just angered what looked like the entirety of this peaceful town – she doubted they would care if she was a firebender, or a princess, for that matter.

"Sorry, folks!" Taiyang broke through the crowd and marched towards her, waving his hands exaggeratedly and nodding to everyone around them one by one. "So sorry! My girl's a nervous one, and she's got a bad case of the hallucinations, you see? Spooky ghosts, visions of gorgeous creatures, you know, the usual business. Gets her every time."

"Dad-"

"Anyway, folks! We're not gonna bother you anymore!" Taiyang slapped her on the back, as if to signal her to shut up. "Nope! We're gonna walk right back to our ship and _sail away_! Yahoo! Sea adventures! We'll, uh, send postcards!"

Taiyang pushed her through the crowd, who was divided by people who either sympathized with her _condition_ or just wanted her gone. As they arrived at the pier, Taiyang let go of her and turned her around.

"What was that about, Yang?" he asked worriedly. "You're not _actually_ having hallucinations, are you?'

"No," Yang rubbed her arms shamefully. "I thought I saw the Avatar. The girl had red hair."

"Ah, I see. Because Ruby is the only redheaded girl in the world," Taiyang spoke fast and under his breath, so exasperated that he might as well be talking to himself. "Let's… Let's just go. I'll tell the captain to make speed towards north."

"Okay," she muttered. "Sorry, Dad."

They walked up the ramp to the ship. As Yang walked towards the passenger compartment, Taiyang laid a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"Just tell me something," he said. "Did you have fun, at least? Before you tried to catch the Avatar again?"

"…Yeah," she nodded. "It was a fun day."

"Well," Taiyang smiled slightly. "I guess this wasn't a waste of time, after all."

* * *

 Ruby groaned as she sat up in her bed. The light of a torch blinded her for a few seconds before she got used to it. Feeling strange in her head, she rubbed it with her fingers, and discovered a layer of bandaging wrapped around her forehead.

"Aw, man," she mumbled. "I must look like a dork."

"Ruby!" Jaune jumped to his feet, and only then Ruby realizing he had been sitting in a chair at the corner of her room. "You're awake? How are you feeling?"

"Fuzzy, but not bad fuzzy. I'll live," Ruby blinked. "Uh, what happened?"

Jaune cocked his head and stared at her with intrigue.

"You don't remember?" he asked, then went on without waiting for an answer. "You flew to Roman Torchwick's ship to distract him or something – that's my theory, anyway. He must have hit you in the head or something, because you were bleeding there."

"Yeah, he hit with me with his cane," Ruby pouted. "What a jerk!"

"Sheesh. Must have hurt," Jaune said. "Anyway. The next part, I actually saw with my own eyes! Everyone did. You fell into the ocean, but then you came up again, and you were waterbending like crazy! Your eyes were glowing – we could see it from a distance. You almost sank Torchwick's ship."

"That's… _really_ crazy!"

"I know, right?"

Ruby frowned. This wasn't the first time she had mustered that much power. She had done something similar when they had visited the Southern Air Temple, and before that… Maybe she had frozen herself into an iceberg the same way.

"It's probably some strange Avatar thingy," Ruby said, wishing she knew more about her spiritual inheritance. "But how did I get back if I was hurt?"

"That's the craziest part. You _swam_ back to our ship," Jaune gulped. "I use _swam_ vaguely, because what you did was closer to bending the ocean to your will. I think Weiss was jealous – but don't tell her I said that."

"Wow," Ruby shook her head in wonder. She held her fingers against the side of her bed, feeling for the ship's motor's familiar humming, but there was nothing. "Why are we stopped? And where's Weiss?"

Jaune's face soured. Instead of answering, he helped her up and walked her out of the room. They passed by several sailors, and they all seemed gloomy. Ruby began to truly worry. Had the damage to the ship been too great? Had someone…?

They reached the deck. It was night, and they were docked on a beach surrounded by thick foliage on all sides. Port and his crew were hard at work, restoring the breach in the deck. Ruby was glad to see there was no more smoke rising from it.

Weiss had been standing near the boarding ramp, which had been lowered to the beach, staring silently into the land beyond them. When she noticed Ruby and Jaune come into the open, she walked to them. Ruby didn't know what to make of her face – it was like she was angry, but at the same time was too tired or sad to show it.

"Avatar," he formal tone cut into Ruby like daggers. "Are you well?"

"Yeah, I'm… I'm good," Ruby tried to disappear inside her cloak, but it was a futile effort. "And you?"

"I'm not injured," Weiss replied simply, then gestured at the beach. "Seeing as you're awake, we'll be departing soon. Don't forget your staff, or any other valuables you might want to bring with you. _Valuables_ , I repeat. Port can transport the rest on the ship."

"Wait, what?" Ruby frowned. "What the heck are you talking about?"

Weiss crossed her arms and glanced quickly at Jaune, as if she had hoped he had already explained whatever was happening to their clueless companion.

"We won't be traveling by ship anymore. It is far too easy for us to be tracked in the sea and, as today has proved, we can't hope to match the Fire Nation's navy alone," Weiss explained succinctly. "There's also the possibility that more are waiting further north, to block our passage. That might prove a trap too disastrous to be surpassed," she sighed, letting her frustration show in a moment of weakness. "We'll walk the roads of the Earth Kingdom until we reach its northern peak, where we will meet with Port again."

"But…" Ruby didn't know what to say.

"Speaking of Port and his crew," Weiss cocked her head, her eyes fixing intensely on Ruby's. "They will distract Roman Torchwick and Yang Xiao Long, making them think we are still on the ship. A neat trick that will put the lives of many loyal men and women at risk. All for your sake, Avatar," she raised a hand. "And if you want to speak anything about _what's_ _right_ , or _fairness_ , or whatever you come up with, _don't_. These are my people who are making a sacrifice, _of their own accord_ , and I don't need to be reminded of it!"

Weiss' lips clamped shut, and for a moment, the night was immersed in absolute silence as even the sailors stopped the repairs to stare at the princess. Jaune looked away awkwardly, and Ruby kept her eyes on her own feet, resembling a small child who had just been scolded by an adult.

"Meet me at the beach when you're done with your preparations," Weiss said, back to her emotionless tone of voice.

She walked down the ramp, followed shortly by Jaune.

Ruby bit her lip, trying her hardest to keep her emotions in check. Like Weiss said, the whole situation felt unfair. It wasn't like Port and everyone else in his ship had asked to escort the Avatar from one side of the world to the other. They'd been happy living in the South Pole, until she came along.

"Miss Ruby!"

She turned around quickly and raised a hand instinctively as she heard an object whizzing towards her. It was her staff, now firmly in her grasp. She looked up, only to see Port and a couple of other sailors staring at her expectantly.

"Do you need anything else?" the mustached captain asked.

"Uh… No. This is all I need," Ruby looked at her staff, then at the captain again. "Thank you, Mister Port. For everything."

"Oh, no. Thank _you_ ," Port smiled. "Have a safe journey, Miss Ruby. Watch over Princess Weiss for me. Her father would kill me if any harm befell her."

"…Yes, sir!" Ruby saluted him, her eyes sparkling once more. "A safe journey to you!"

And with that, Ruby turned around and walked down to the beach, her cloak flowing with the wind behind her. Jaune looked at her anxiously, and she smiled encouragingly in return. Weiss seemed to wipe her eyes with her sleeve before taking the first steps away from her ship.

* * *

 The sun rose higher and higher in the sky, and his men were nowhere closer to finishing the repairs to his ship. Were they stupid, or just incompetent? Sure, the Avatar had made a hole or two or three, but those shouldn't be so hard to fix!

Roman Torchwick wasn't angry, nor was he frustrated. He was just _wounded_ , in an emotional sense. He had been defeated by a little redheaded girl who apparently believed the world could be fixed by pretty words.

Oh, no. That just would _not_ do!

"Oh, hey," a familiar, yet unwelcomed voice greeted him as he stared up at his ship from the beach. "Finally found you, General. Seems like your ship was struck by some big Grimm, huh?"

Roman turned his head to glare at Taiyang Xiao Long. That annoying little Consort, always speaking with soft words, yet always with another meaning behind them…

"I wish," Torchwick said grudgingly. "This was the Avatar's work. She caught me with my guard down."

"Ah, yes. I'm sure that's what happened," Taiyang smiled. "Rumor is you did some damage to her ship too, didn't you? Those marks over there… It's like _another_ ship also stopped here for repairs."

"Who said that? It was Perry, wasn't it? It's always Perry," Roman groaned. "Yes, Xiao Long, Red somehow repaired her ship in record time and made a swift getaway. Maybe you should be chasing after her instead of mocking me like a useless moron!"

"Oh, I wasn't mocking you. Not at all!" Taiyang said happily.

Roman was very tempted to strangle the man to death, but before he could, another unpleasant visitor appeared beside them.

"Oh, my!" Yang gasped exaggeratedly. "What kind of Grimm attacked you, General?!"

"I'm done!" Roman threw his arms up in the air and strode towards his ship's boarding ramp.

Taiyang laughed and patted his daughter on the back, but she remained silent, tapping her foot up and down as if she were anxious to say something. When Roman was out of earshot, she turned to her father and leaned closer.

"Dad," she whispered. "Look what I found!"

She held up a piece of red fabric in her right hand and shook it in front of his face.

"That's… pretty red," Taiyang rolled his eyes. "Oh, wait. You think it's the Avatar's?"

"It has to be!" Yang nodded. "I know it's a stretch, but it's gotta be true! It was just there, stuck in the foliage. Her cloak must have been caught by a branch or something. Do you know what that means?"

Taiyang sighed and pushed her away from Roman's ship and towards their own, hoping to avoid eavesdroppers.

"She's gone inland! A ploy to distract us and Torchwick!" Yang said. "We have a speed advantage now. We can follow the coast, then land somewhere further north and block her path. She'll never suspect it!"

"Okay. Sure," Taiyang shook his head in wonder as he pulled her to the ship's deck. "Let's do that."

"I'm a genius! And you know what the best part is?!" she smiled proudly. "If it weren't for yesterday, I wouldn't have noticed that little piece of fabric there! But because I was well rested, I did! You were right, Dad!"

"I was? I mean, yes, I was! This was my objective all along!" Taiyang laid a hand on his belly and rubbed it. "No ulterior motives, of course."

Yang went to yell at the captain quickly, then ran to her room inside the ship. She slammed the door behind her, then plopped down on a chair behind her desk. She spread a scroll there, grabbed a pen, then took a deep breath.

"Alright," she touched the paper with the tip of her pen. "What do I know about the Avatar? And what will help me defeat her…?"


	7. The Girl From the North Pole

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Seven: The Girl From the North Pole**

* * *

Ruby hummed thoughtfully as she examined the top of a tree, her legs swinging carelessly below the branch she was sitting on. Red and purple berries broke the green of the leaves, but she wasn't sure if she should take any of them. Weiss had warned her that _anything_ could be poisonous – perhaps deadly so.

Her stomach rumbled, and she sighed sadly. She was hungry, Jaune was hungry… and she knew Weiss was hungry too, though the princess would never admit it. Days of wandering through the deserted paths of the Earth Kingdom, in an effort to avoid the Fire Nation, had done that to them.

Maybe she could afford to eat _one_ berry, just to test out its effects. Then she could gather more and share them with her friends. What was the worst that could happen?

"Alrighty," Ruby snatched one of the berries and eyed it warily. "Here it goes…"

She tossed the berry inside her mouth and bit on it. A sour liquid secreted from it, and she fought the urge to spit it out instantly. She was rewarded for her restraint a few seconds after, as the sour taste quickly became sweet.

"Mmm!" She jumped to her feet and began to collect more of the berries. "This is good! Definitely not poisonous! Silly Weiss."

Once she had filled both of her hands with the berries, Ruby jumped from the branch and bended the air around her to slow her descent. She landed gently beside Weiss and Jaune, who both looked impatient, though for different reasons each.

"So," Jaune said eagerly. "Did you find anything to eat?"

"Yep!" Ruby replied cheerfully, nodding at her full hands. "There's a lot of these up there!"

"Ooh, let me take a few and-"

"Wait," Weiss cut him off and inspected the berries suspiciously. "I don't recognize any of these. We can't run the risk of eating something poisonous by accident," she crossed her arms and looked away. "We've wasted enough time with this pointless break. Let's get going, and hopefully we'll come across a village where we can get something proper to eat."

"Oh, come on, Weiss! They're not poisonous!" Ruby exclaimed. "I checked for that myself!"

Weiss raised an eyebrow in puzzlement, before realization dawned upon her. "Ruby, you don't mean you actually _ate_ one?" she asked in horror. "Do you know what that means?"

"Uh, I know," Jaune took one of the berries. "It means I can eat them too, because if Ruby dies, we're all doomed anyway."

"What – No – You two-" Weiss closed her eyes and pinched her forehead. "I can't believe I'm stuck with you," she shook her head. "Fine. Eat to your heart's delight. I'm going to search for a place to refill our waterskins."

Ruby opened her mouth to protest, but Weiss brushed her off with a gesture and walked away, disappearing between the trees of the forest. The redhead pouted and looked down guiltily at the berries she had gathered.

"Maybe I shouldn't have gone searching for food after all," she said. "Weiss seemed really angry about it."

"I wouldn't worry about it," Jaune shrugged as he began to eat one berry after another, without pause. "She's just upset about abandoning her ship and her men. She'll get better with time."

"If you say so. You've known her for a lot longer than me."

Jaune paused briefly. Ruby's logic made sense, but he still barely knew Weiss, even after so many years of living in the same village. He didn't want to make Ruby worry even more, though, so he stayed quiet and kept eating.

"Wait," Ruby frowned. "Can poisonous berries have a… uhm, _delayed_ , effect? You know, you eat one and die two hours later with no warning? Maybe we shouldn't eat these."

Jaune stopped chewing and stared at Ruby as if she had just prophesized his early death. After a few seconds, she shrugged and tossed three berries inside her mouth, humming cheerfully all the while.

"Well," he gulped. "It would be an honor to be buried beside an Avatar."

* * *

Yang stared down at her newly-acquired ride, a two-legged ostrich-horse with white fur and black stripes. Or was it black fur and white stripes? She had always found these jokes funny back home, but now that the question was real and present before her, it made her head hurt a bit.

Ugly as the creature was, she had to admit it was resilient. She had been riding it for almost four hours, and it hadn't slowed down at all. Her father's was much the same, following at an identical pace at her side.

She poked the ostrich-horse's head curiously, and it emitted a low squawk in response. Yang's face lit up like a child's, and she poked again and again, always getting the same reaction. A drop of sweat poured down Taiyang's forehead as he looked at his daughter in disbelief.

"Sweetheart, please," he sighed. "Don't poke the ostrich, or its head will fall off."

"W-what? Oh, right. Of course," Yang sat up embarrassedly. "Wait. _Don't poke the ostrich, or its head will fall off_. That could make a pretty good proverb."

"I guess. I didn't mean to create one, if that's what you're thinking," Taiyang said. "Proverbs are for crazy people."

Yang nodded, knowing better than to argue with her father about that.

She looked at the path ahead of them, wondering how close they were to their destination. After their last… meeting with Torchwick, they had travelled by sea for three days, before landing and making their way deeper into Earth Kingdom land. Yang hoped to intercept the Avatar and her friends, and her father knew just the spot for it: Atlas, one of the most important cities in the Kingdom, second only to the capital itself. To go north, everyone had to pass through there, unless they were willing to make a detour of weeks, if not months, around the city.

"Keep your head up," Taiyang advised seriously. "Remember what I said about the Earth Queen's soldiers? The closer we get to Atlas, the more likely we are to come across them."

"So?" Yang tilted her head towards him. "It's not like they can just attack us for no reason, even if they recognize us as Fire Nation. We're not at war."

"Not officially," he sighed. "Sometimes I forget how young you are. Not everybody has a sense of honor like ours. Those soldiers are protecting their homes and families, so they'll fight whoever they think they need to fight."

"Well, _we_ are also protecting _their_ homes and families," Yang said angrily. "I don't care if they don't want our help! They need to stop being so stubborn and just accept it."

Taiyang frowned and opened his mouth to say something, but a rock flew from somewhere behind them and struck him on the back of his head. He toppled off his ostrich and fell to the ground, unconscious.

Yang let go of her reins and ignited her hands, searching her surroundings furiously.

"Whoever you are, you just made a _big_ mistake!" she yelled. "You're gonna regret attacking my-"

Suddenly, something hit the back of her head, and she fell down too. Her eyes opened and closed. As black spots filled her vision, the last thing she saw was a group of green-clad soldiers standing over her.

* * *

It wasn't hard to find a place to refill their waterskins, yet Weiss found herself wishing it had been. Right now, she needed time away from Ruby and Jaune, and if that meant walking miles upon miles in her search, she would gladly do it.

Nevertheless, she sat down on the shore of the small lake and unscrewed the top of her waterskin, only then realizing she hadn't brought her companions' with her. Weiss sighed and gestured with her right hand, summoning her bending abilities.

Much to her frustration, the water took three whole seconds to respond to her command, and when it did, only a thin string of it rose from the surface and floated towards her erratically. She slammed her hand on the ground furiously, and the water splashed back down.

"Imbecile," she muttered, then took a deep breath. "Come on. Concentrate."

She repeated her gesture, this time with her eyes closed, and felt the water responding almost immediately. When she opened her eyes, she found her waterskin was filled to the brink. She forced herself to smile, then screwed the top and attached the tool to her belt.

Now, she should probably go back to Ruby and Jaune to retrieve their waterskins and fill them too. It was the responsible thing to do – the idiots might forget to do that and suffer from dehydration later. But… The lake before her was pristine, the air was clear, and there was no noise around her except for the occasional chirping of birds and rustling of leaves.

Weiss crossed her legs, laid her hands on her knees, and listened. This was perhaps the first moment of peace she had had since leaving the ship. For the first time, she remembered that decision and didn't feel regret or shame. She just accepted it as it was – a decision made not only by her, but by captain Port and his men too.

The moment did not last long, though, as she heard a familiar voice nearing her position. Weiss sighed and rose to her feet, waiting patiently until Ruby and Jaune broke from the trees around her and joined her on the shore.

"Hey, you found a lake!" Ruby said happily. "Good work, Weiss!"

"Your approval means the world to me," Weiss replied sarcastically. "I suppose you couldn't bear the thought of being apart from me for more than ten minutes?"

"Nope!" Ruby smiled. "Oh, look! My tongue is purple!"

She opened her mouth and stuck her tongue out – indeed, it was purple. Jaune scratched his neck sheepishly and opened his mouth, showing the same symptom. Weiss smiled smugly, knowing she had made the right choice in not eating the mysterious berries.

"At least we haven't died yet," Jaune said with his mouth open, making it difficult for anyone to understand a word of it. He blinked and spoke normally again. "Uh. Look! Water!"

"Very smooth," Weiss quipped. "Unscrew your waterskins. I'll fill them for you."

The purple-tongued duo did as she ordered. Weiss used her waterbending again, but she felt it was more difficult now. She only understood the reason for that when she looked up and saw Ruby staring at her without blinking, her silver eyes glinting with… fascination?

"What's with you?" Weiss asked loudly, then flinched at her own tone. "Sorry. Is there something wrong, Ruby?"

"N-no, just…" Ruby gulped, as if whatever she had to say would earn her a painful death by Weiss' hands. "It's nothing. Just forget it."

" _Ruby_ ," the princess crossed her arms sternly. "Just say it."

"Alright!" Ruby exclaimed. "Well, remember when Torchwick attacked us? I mean, of course you remember, silly me, but remember how I went all crazy and glowy and _paw-paw-paw_ and I almost tore his ship apart with waterbending?" she paused to catch her breath. "That was cool, and I want to do more of that. And you're a waterbender. So… how about you teach me?"

Weiss looked away, feeling oddly vulnerable all of a sudden – an unusual feeling when she was next to Ruby and Jaune, of all people. She had no intent to agree to that idea, and normally, she would simply reply with a sharp _no_ or something similar, yet this time…

"I… don't think that's a good idea," Weiss said slowly. "We wouldn't have much time to practice, and walking all day is already taking a toll on all of us."

"But we've been taking breaks already, and we're pretty well-rested right now!" Ruby pointed out eagerly. "It's not like it's difficult to find lakes or streams in the Earth Kingdom, either. If push comes to shove, there's always the ocean."

"You have a point," Weiss replied hesitantly. "But… we are going to the North Pole _because_ you need a waterbending master to teach you. You will learn, just… you have to be patient for a couple months."

"I know that, but I don't need a master right now. I know you can't teach me everything," Ruby shook her head. "Just the basics. Please?"

Weiss couldn't help but feel a bit wounded, even if Ruby hadn't meant to demean her. She looked at Jaune, fruitlessly hoping that he would side with her, but he was only watching cautiously.

"…Fine," Weiss said grudgingly. "I'll teach you. _But_! I can't guarantee you'll be able to actually do anything. Some people need masters to learn even the basics."

"Don't worry, I'm a good student!" Ruby smiled. "So… When do we start?"

* * *

Yang groaned as she woke up. She shook her head and blinked several times to clear her vision. She was in some sort of military camp filled with green tents and weapon racks. A flag sporting the insignia of the Earth Kingdom wavered high in the air nearby.

A metal chain bound her to a wooden post, and she couldn't as much as rise to her feet without hurting herself. She looked over her shoulder and found her father in the same situation, though he looked more annoyed than anything else.

"Hey," he rolled his eyes. "Slept well?"

"Dad!" she said through gritted teeth. "Where are we?!"

" _Certainly_ not an Earth Kingdom camp," he replied sarcastically. "Though I don't know why anyone would ever think that."

"Alright, Captain Sarcasm, I got it. So earthbenders caught us off-guard," Yang nodded. "How do we get out?"

"We ask nicely," Taiyang frowned. "That right there wasn't sarcasm. It's my actual plan, and I suggest you adhere to it."

Yang was about to point how bad that plan sounded, but before she could, a man exited a tent and walked towards them. His black hair was cut short, as was his beard, giving him the perfect appearance of a soldier. His uniform sported the Kingdom's insignia, like most soldier's, but his was etched with gold. Yang took that to mean he had significant status in the army.

"Greetings. I apologize for your current position and for, well, attacking you from behind like that. But I'm sure you understand our reasons," he said, looking from daughter to father. "You are firebenders, are you not?"

"Indeed, we are," Taiyang answered. "I apologize for intruding on your land – though I don't quite believe what we were doing was intrusion, really. Our only intent was to reach Atlas."

"Is that so? Why, may I ask?" The soldier asked. "We've had trouble with your people for years – now more than ever. I find it difficult to believe you are here on vacation."

"Hmm. You could call it that, I suppose," Taiyang shrugged. "You see, General, I am tired of this war. I don't want to live in, much less serve a country that bullies another under false pretenses. So I left and took my daughter with me, to find us a better home."

"I see," the other man took a step back. "Apologies, but we must keep you here for now, until I decide what to do with you."

"Understood."

The general threw Yang one last look before returning to his tent. The princess squirmed and looked back at her father.

"Well, asking nicely did wonders," she whispered. "Can we try to break free now?"

"Don't waste your energy," Taiyang said. "If we have to break out, we will. Until then, I'd rather wait and see if the General will release us peacefully."

"He never said he was a General," Yang noted. "Do you know him?"

"Yeah, and let me tell you, he's a real stick in the mud," he sighed. "Oh, well. We'll probably have to break out anyway."

"Dad… You might just be the worst strategist ever."

* * *

"Alright, Ruby. I'm going to give you instructions, _very specific_ instructions, and you must follow them to the best of your capabilities," Weiss said calmly. "Do you understand?"

"Uh… yeah?"

When Ruby had asked to learn waterbending, she hadn't expected Weiss to sit down with her at the lakeshore, legs crossed and facing the water like monks. She knew Weiss was a generally serious person, but this was getting a little ridiculous.

"Don't _uh, yeah_ me," Weiss' stare could slice mountains in half. "Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Ruby nodded and sat up straighter.

Somewhere behind them, Jaune contained a bout of laughter. Weiss was doing her best to ignore his presence. She only hoped he wouldn't be interrupting them, or else she would be forced to take drastic measures.

"Step one. Take a deep breath. In, and out. In, and out," she said dutifully. "Create a steady rhythm, until you don't have to think about it anymore."

"Uh, I wasn't thinking about it before. I'm only thinking about it now because you mentioned it," Ruby frowned. "Seriously, I can't ignore the fact that I'm breathing. It's annoying and…" she paused when she noticed Weiss' disapproving glare. "In and out. Understood."

Weiss stared at her for a long time, until she was sure enough that Ruby was doing what she was told.

"Good. Your breathing is _very_ important. Think of it like an anchor of sorts – an action that centers and anchors you," Weiss said. "Step two. Close your eyes. Listen to your surroundings."

"That's two steps." Jaune whispered.

" _Jaune_."

"Sorry."

Ruby closed her eyes and focused on everything around her. The birds, the wind, the water moving ever so quietly… It was nice, but she was starting to feel impatient.

"Step three. Clear your mind of all stray thoughts," Weiss spoke. "This won't be easy, but that's okay. It shouldn't be. Take your time."

"Actually, it's not that hard," Ruby shrugged, still with her eyes closed. "The Air Nomads did stuff like this all the time. Mom taught me how to do it, and I'm pretty used-"

"Evidently you are _not_ used to it," Weiss interrupted. "Focus. Once your mind is clear, think of the water. Feel its call inside your mind. Then, slowly lift your hands…"

Minutes passed as Ruby sat there in silence, her eyelids quivering in concentration, her breathing loud and rhythmic. Jaune shuffled on his spot impatiently, while Weiss made no sound of her own, not even noticing she was holding her breath in anticipation.

Finally, Ruby's hands left her knees, palms turned downwards. The water of the lake rose slightly… before a few bubbles popped on its surface and it turned back as it was before.

Ruby opened her eyes and blinked confusedly. "So…" she said awkwardly. "Did I waterbend?"

"You did," Weiss nodded. "The lake definitely responded to your command."

"So I made a floating octopus made of water?!" Ruby shouted excitedly.

"…No," the princess frowned. "You made a few bubbles."

"Oh. Okay," Ruby looked down, all her cheerfulness gone at once. "That's… cool, I guess."

"Don't worry about it. Like I said, these are just the basics. Once you perfect this process, you'll be capable of much more impressive feats," Weiss assured. "Here. I will give a demonstration."

Weiss gathered her focus quickly and lifted her hands as one. A sphere of water rose from the surface and spun once, before plopping back down.

"Wait! You didn't close your eyes or breath in and out or anything!" Ruby protested.

"Of course I didn't. I don't need to – not anymore," Weiss' eyes narrowed testily. "Years of practice have given me the ability to clear my thoughts very quickly. You, however, still need to follow the steps I just taught you, _until_ you're able to do the same. For now… _practice_."

Weiss snapped her fingers, and after a moment of hesitation, Ruby closed her eyes again and concentrated once again.

For the next hour, Weiss and Jaune watched as Ruby continued to try waterbending. She had no greater success than her first time, only managing to muster bubbles and make the water shake minimally.

Weiss had to give her credit. She had expected Ruby to give up after a couple more tries, but the redhead just kept going, determined to become a master by nightfall. Once she started to sigh in frustration and lost all connection to the water, though, Weiss tapped her on the shoulder and shook her head.

"That's enough practice for today," she said. "We'll pick up where we left tomorrow."

"Okay," Ruby stared at the lake as if they were sworn enemies. "Grr… This should be working! How come I trashed Torchwick's ship and now I can't do anything but make bubbles?!"

"It's probably Avatar stuff," Jaune noted amusedly. "Weiss' eyes don't glow white when she waterbends, so I don't think ability had anything to do with what you did to Torchwick."

"Humph. Maybe you're right, Jaune," Ruby huffed. "If only I could be a glowy Avatar all the time…"

Weiss smiled, feeling oddly satisfied about her impromptu lesson. She had been so afraid of doing it before, but now she had to admit it had been… _nice_. Ruby wasn't a horrible student, and even Jaune's interruptions hadn't been so annoying – she might even welcome them in the future.

"Well, then," she dusted her clothes dutifully. "I suppose we should now find a safe place to sleep. It's nearly dusk, and who knows if the Fire Nation-"

"Wow! Ruby!" Jaune interrupted her with a shout as he jumped to his feet.

"What?" Weiss blinked confusedly and looked back at the redhead. " _What_?!"

Ruby's forehead was wrinkled in concentration, the tip of her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth, as she waved exaggeratedly with her hands. In front of her floated a swirling mass of water, which started to contract and take different forms, until it resembled an octopus.

"I did it!" she exclaimed triumphantly. "It's a water octopus!"

"But – But – _How_?!" Weiss shrieked. "Ruby, stop right now and explain yourself!"

Ruby flinched, and the water returned to the lake with a splash. "I don't know how I did that. I just really wanted to do some real waterbending, so I… kinda tried without following your instructions…?" she spoke meekly. "Sorry."

"That doesn't make any sense! Nobody should be able to waterbend so easily, not even an Avatar," Weiss said. "That's not how you do it, Ruby."

"Well…" Jaune gulped, considering his next words very carefully. "It worked, didn't it?"

Weiss just looked from Ruby to Jaune, then back to Ruby. After a few seconds, she turned away and crossed her arms, her face suddenly lacking any emotion.

"We need to go," she said coldly, and walked away.

Ruby's shoulders sunk with dread. Every time she thought she found something that could maybe bring Weiss and her closer together, she was proven wrong. First traveling the world, then the berries, and now waterbending.

"I'm sorry that happened, Ruby," Jaune rubbed the back of his neck uneasily. "I'm sure Weiss will come around eventually."

"I don't know, Jaune," Ruby's eyes shimmered with tears. "Maybe we just aren't meant to be friends."

* * *

"When you said the guy was a stick in the mud, I didn't think he would leave us out here for so long," Yang grunted unhappily. "Seriously. It's freaking nighttime already. What's he doing inside that tent?"

"Probably concocting an evil plan," Taiyang theorized. "Or maybe he just fell asleep?"

Yang exhaled angrily and eyed the chain binding them to the post. She had agreed to go with her father's plan and cooperate with the Earth Kingdom soldiers, but her patience was growing thin _fast_. Also, her stomach was starting to growl, and that was never a good sign.

She squirmed, trying to reach for the chain, but her hands couldn't reach it. Still, she could at least turn her arms and take aim. The chain was made of simple iron, and it seemed to be a tad rusty. A firebending blast could probably shatter it, she only had to be careful to not hurt herself in the process.

"Yang," Taiyang whispered, deadly serious. "Don't do it. Follow my lead."

"I've been doing that for the past… I don't know how many hours!" Yang hissed. "Time to do it my way."

"No…" he groaned in dismay. "Dragons almighty, why did I have to father the most stubborn girl in the history of the Fire Nation?"

"Thanks for the compliment, Dad! Now, you might wanna turn your face away. I'm gonna…"

Her voice died down as the general finally stepped out of his tent, his eyes immediately darting to his prisoners. Yang hesitated briefly before lowering her arms in a futile attempt to appear innocent.

"It took some research, but I believe I've finally discovered who you really are," the General said calmly. "General and Royal Consort Taiyang. Or so you used to be called. You had a falling out with the Fire Lord, didn't you?" he looked at Yang. "And the heir to the throne. Princess Yang Branwen, in the flesh."

"I prefer Xiao Long, but yeah, that's me alright," Yang grumbled.

"You know, I am kind of offended that you didn't remember me, General Ironwood," Taiyang commented lightly. "Sure, it was some twenty years ago, but our forces worked together to fight the Grimm in your kingdom once."

"My apologies. You were such a humbling force back in the day, perhaps that's why I did not recognize you," Ironwood said. "But that's irrelevant. What _isn't_ irrelevant is the reason why you're here. You don't honestly expect me to believe your previous tale?"

"I suppose not," Taiyang sighed. "Well, if you must know, I-"

"We're hunting the Avatar," Yang interrupted firmly. "We had no intention to fight your men, much less hurt your people. If anything, we wished to help. But that's in the past, _General Ironwood_ , seeing as you threw a freaking rock at my head!"

Ironwood watched her silently, not moving a muscle even as the skin of her hands began to glow with escalating heat.

"You will release me, General, or I'll become very angry," she said. "And let me warn you… You _don't_ want to see me angry."

"…Amusing," Ironwood smiled smugly. "But what makes you think I will release you after you just admitted you are hunting the Avatar? I know you firebenders are ruthless, but targeting the world's greatest defender against the Grimm? I can hardly believe such foolishness," he shook his head, all signs of levity disappearing in the act. "No. I can't let you go. But I can't let you be anywhere near my people either."

Ironwood took a step back and raised his arms. A huge chunk of rock broke from the ground and floated beside him, shaking and losings its ragged edges, until it possessed a sharp, pointy end. Yang's eyes widened as she realized just what the general meant to do, and she thrust her arms forward, trying to break her chain, to no avail.

"I am sorry," Ironwood said gravely. "Not only for you, but for what effect your death will have on the world. Perhaps if you hadn't been so careless in your hunt…" he shook his head. "I will personally send a letter to the Fire Lord. If you have any last words, I will-"

Suddenly, the chain shattered from the opposite side of the post, and Taiyang stood up, shouting ferociously. He spun around, one leg high up in the air, and sent a ball of fire flying towards the Earth General, who had no time to react and was struck in the chest. Ironwood rolled backwards, his shirt smoldering, and his rock dropped to the ground and broke into tiny pieces.

Yang jumped up and raised her arms in front of her face just in time to protect herself from another rocky projectile. Soldiers rushed towards them, brandishing spears and preparing earthbending attacks.

Before she could even start to do anything, Taiyang shouted once again, and flames ignited around him, jumping at every one of the soldiers. Some of them were wise enough to jump behind cover, but most were hit and knocked out of combat immediately.

"Woah!" Yang shouted in amazement. "You feeling good, Dad?"

"Yep! That was… therapeutic," Taiyang cracked his neck. "I don't get to do this very often. You wanna have a go at the rest?"

"You cretins!" Ironwood rose and threw a rock at them. Yang spun in place and punched, shattering the stone, and at the same time releasing a barrage of flames that forced the general into hiding.

"Nope," Yang said. "Let's make a run for it. Did they take Beaky with them?"

Taiyang raised an eyebrow at her. "Beaky…?"

"I mean… Uh, our ostrich-horses," Yang explained sheepishly. "I _might_ have named mine…"

Together, they ran through the camp, deflecting the soldier's attacks and driving them back when necessary. Finally, Yang spotted a group of animals tied to the trees surrounding the tents, among them two familiar ostrich-horses. She sprinted towards them and burned their leashes, then jumped into Beaky's saddle.

"Come on, boy!" she yelled. "Run like the wind!"

"Hey, that's very ironic considering you're chasing the Avatar, who also happens to be an airbender!" Taiyang shouted behind her.

"Dad! Not the time!"

The ostriches ran extremely fast, so much that Yang found herself almost falling off her saddle because of it. She gritted her teeth and leaned forward to keep her balance, staring at the road ahead of them.

* * *

The hours passed by, quiet and eventless, past midnight, and yet Weiss couldn't seem to keep her eyes shut. Every time she tried to fall asleep, her mind was filled with thoughts of the day – of Ruby waterbending almost effortlessly, and her utter failure in teaching.

She tried to tell herself she couldn't sleep because she was angry at Ruby, but she wouldn't be convinced. Yes, Ruby was consistently annoying in many different ways, almost as if it was a hobby of hers, but this time, the redhead wasn't to blame. She had been excited at the prospect of waterbending and, honestly, Weiss was glad she had managed to do it. The last thing the world needed was an Avatar who couldn't reach her full potential.

Weiss knew what was wrong. She was angry at herself. For failing. Yes, that was it.

Finally, after hours of lying awake on the ground, Weiss stood up and inspected the small clearing they had chosen to rest at for the night. Jaune was sound asleep, huddled next to a tree, while Ruby was sleeping on a tall branch, somehow managing to not fall off it despite her constant fidgeting.

Careful to not wake them up, Weiss walked away from the camp, keeping her eyes glue to the ground so as to not trip over anything in the dark. The moon lit the way and made it easier for her to find her destination.

It took but a few minutes for her to arrive at the lake they'd practiced at before. She walked to the shore and looked down, seeing her reflection on the water. Her brow furrowed in frustration. It was almost like her own reflection was taunting her.

Slowly, she lifted a trembling hand to touch her face, running it over her faded, easily-forgotten scar. Her words from earlier echoed inside her head.

 _That's not how you do it, Ruby_.

Her tutors used to say the same thing, before she was sent to the South Pole. Always telling her to keep her emotions in check, that she could only reach perfection that way. It didn't make sense to her then, and though she had tried to deny it, it also didn't make sense to her now.

Water was the element of change. How could one hope to be a waterbending master if they refused to let their emotions dictate their actions? Such a foolish way of thinking…

But even more foolish, perhaps, was trying to fight against that. To veer from the safe, well-traveled road… the only end was catastrophe. The scar was there to remind her of that.

She focused on her reflection again, her eyes narrowing in quiet rage. Now that she looked again, it reminded her a lot of her sister.

"You're wrong."

She raised her arms, and the water of the lake followed along, soaring higher than the top of the trees, spinning around itself to form a ferocious whirlpool. Then, she flicked her hands, and in an instant, the water froze from top to bottom. Weiss stared at it in silence for a few moments, before turning around.

She took a few steps towards the camp, then paused briefly as she noticed a blur of red at the edge of her vision. A smile formed on her lips.

So predictable.

* * *

After many, many hours of riding, Yang and her father were forced to stop, stomachs grumbling and exhaustion kicking in. They broke away from the road and found a secluded place against a rocky wall, where it would be hard for them to be spotted, and set up a hasty camp.

Taiyang took two pieces of meat from their saddlebags and tossed them to Yang, who put them to cook above their fire. As she stared into the flames, a question kept clamoring in the back of her head.

"Dad," she asked quietly. "If you could have broken our chains so easily, why did you not do it earlier? Why choose to talk with Ironwood at all?"

"Because we're not brutes. Violence breeds violence," he explained simply, his eyes observing the starry night sky. "You should only resort to it when all else fails."

"Well, yeah," Yang frowned. "I know. But he was going to kill me."

Taiyang looked at her and smiled humorlessly. "Yes, he was. And because of that, you might find it easy to judge him as a ruthless man," he said. "But perhaps you should think of all the firebenders he didn't spare before. All the people that died because of his mercy, people he had the duty of protecting. Friends… and family, I wouldn't doubt," he paused meaningfully. "Life has taught him a cruel lesson, and while I might disagree with the answer he took from it, I don't judge him for it. Would you be any difference if you were in his shoes?"

Yang's first instinct was to argue that, _yes_ , she would be different. But she deep down she knew that was a lie – she would never get to know the answer until she was put to the test. She could only hope that time never came.

"There are no villains in this war, sweetheart. Just violence and tragedy," Taiyang sighed. "Well. This merry conversation has only made me hungrier! That meat gonna take long?"

"Uhm… No," she muttered. "I don't think so."

"Good," he leaned back and laid on the ground. "Wanna look at the stars with me? It's beautiful tonight."

"I… think I'll pass on that."

"Alright. Your loss."

* * *

Ruby's eyes fluttered open, her vision blurry and muscles aching. She was usually a morning person, but now she was exhausted. Staying up late was probably not the wisest choice when trekking through a kingdom on foot.

"Hey, sleepyhead!" Weiss called from below. "Rise and shine! The sun's been up for hours already!"

Ruby was so startled by the princess' voice, she gasped and fell from her branch, landing not-so-gracefully on the ground. Weiss stared down at her with vague amusement.

"Look who's up," she said sarcastically. "Or down, I should say."

"Did… did you just call me sleepyhead?" Ruby jumped to her feet. "Did you just _rise and shine_?!"

"Perhaps," Weiss gestured dismissively. "Are you hungry? I believe Jaune saved some of those dangerous purple berries for you."

Jaune looked up from where he was sitting and burped. "…I did?"

"Or not," Weiss sighed. "I suppose you'll have to search for more if we don't find a village soon"

Ruby nodded, and as she did, she noticed Weiss' tongue was… purple?

"Weiss, did you eat the berries too?!" she exclaimed in disbelief.

"Perhaps," Weiss repeated. "Why? Is it so surprising that I risked getting poisoned because I was nearly starving?"

"Yes, actually, it is," Ruby eyed her suspiciously. "Who are you and what did you do to Weiss?!"

Weiss' demeanor took a sudden change as she rolled her eyes, finally demonstrating a bit of her usual self.

"Nothing changed. I just… had a lot to think about after yesterday," she frowned. "I know I seem… cold, sometimes, but I don't mean to. Actually, I _meant_ to. Not anymore, though. From now on, I'll be the best traveling companion you'll ever have!"

"Hey!" Jaune crossed his arms in disapproval.

"Yes, that includes you, Mister _Interrupts people's conversations like an unrefined caveman_ ," Weiss said. "Furthermore, I will also be the best waterbending teacher you'll ever have."

"Uh, alright?" Ruby blinked. "Yeah, _nothing's_ changed."

Weiss glared at her. "Also, I know you were spying on me last night," she said. "Don't ever do that again. Can we move on now?"

Without waiting for an answer, Weiss turned and walked away, searching for the way back to the road they had been traveling by. Ruby and Jaune shared a meaningful look.

"So much for cheerful Weiss," Ruby pouted.

"I don't know," Jaune shrugged. "I thought she was kinda creepy."

"I _heard_ that!" Weiss shouted back at them. "Come on, you dolts! Do you _want_ to get lost?!"

Ruby ran after the princess, lifting a dust cloud behind her. Jaune followed, waving a hand in front of his face as he coughed.


	8. A Town for Grimm

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Eight: A Town for Grimm**

* * *

 Sweat trickled down Weiss' forehead, and she wasn't pleased at all about it. She swept it off quickly, hoping that the others hadn't seen it, and once more looked up at the sky and cursed. They had been protected from the sun by forests' treetops until a few days ago, when the road they'd been following finally came into the open.

Spring was gone and in its place settled summer, bringing with it a level of heat and humidity the three traveling companions were not accustomed with. Weiss and Jaune had lived in arctic regions all their lives, and Ruby had been sheltered from most weather effects in the great heights of the Southern Air Temple. It was no surprise, then, that their speed and energy had taken a significant drop.

Weiss was beginning to worry about her companions' health, as well as her own. If the weather didn't get better soon, they might actually become sick and unable to travel until the season ended. That was a setback she wasn't willing to accept… but it wasn't as if she had any choice in the matter.

Better a late Avatar than a dead one.

"Weeeiss," Ruby groaned loudly, turning around so she was walking backwards while facing her newest mentor. "Do you have any water left? I'm _really_ thirsty."

"Yours ran out?" Weiss frowned and looked down at her own waterskin, which was attached to her hip. She shook it slightly. "I might have a couple sips left. Then that's it. If we don't find a stream or lake soon…"

"Yikes," Jaune hissed fearfully. Quickly, he took his waterskin and tossed it to Ruby. "Mine's a little fuller. We gotta share, right?"

"Thanks, Jaune!" Ruby exclaimed, and gladly unscrewed the top of the recipient. Even so, she was very sparing with how much she drank.

Weiss nodded approvingly at both of her companions, then turned to look at the side of the road. She stopped in her tracks and stared transfixed at something she hadn't seen before. Her mouth opened, but no words came out – half because of how dry her throat was, and half because what she was seeing was too good to be true.

Jaune looked over his shoulder and noticed her standing there. He poked Ruby in the shoulder, and they walked back to Weiss.

"What's up, Weiss?" Jaune asked worriedly. "Uh… are you okay?"

"Did the heat scramble your brains?!" Ruby almost yelled, her eyes widening in panic.

"Are you… are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Weiss gulped. "That's not a mirage, right?"

Ruby narrowed her eyes and leaned forward. A few seconds later, she realized what Weiss was talking about. In the distance, the brightness of sunlight reflecting on something metallic, and below that, a number of scattered houses.

"Winged-peanuts, is that a village?!" Ruby shouted.

"I-I think so!" Jaune shook his head in wonder. "Should we go there?"

"Maybe not," Weiss said reluctantly. "The Fire Nation could have a hold there, and likely some soldiers. We're in no shape to fight-"

"We're going!"

Allowing no opportunity for discussion, Ruby wrapped her arms around Weiss and Jaune and took off running. Dust rose behind her like a sudden sandstorm. Weiss yelped and clung to her, eyes wide, while Jaune was left to drag along the ground, bouncing off rocks and making the appropriate _ouches_ and _urghs_ for his position.

Finally, Ruby came to a halt at the center of the village. Weiss dropped to her feet immediately and dusted her dress with a haughty expression on her face, as if nothing had happened. Jaune stayed down, groaning in discomfort.

Ruby looked around curiously. Just in front of them was a water fountain, which she had to muster all her self-control not to jump into for a hybrid swim-drink session. Square houses made of clay surrounded them, most having more than one floor. One of the buildings was taller than the rest, though, a temple of some sort. At its very top was a bronze bell, swaying slowly, as if it had just been rung.

A sense of unease filled her. The only sound in the town was the splashing of the fountain. Where was everyone?

"Guys," Ruby whispered shakily. "I-I think this place is… _haunted_ …"

Weiss raised a hand to object, but she stopped halfway through the movement as she listened to the odd silence of the village. A chill ran down her back. Then, she shook her head and put her hands on her hips.

"Don't be an imbecile, Ruby. There is no such thing as a haunted village," she said matter-of-factly. "Right, Jaune?" she looked down at the collapsed boy and poked him with her foot. "Jaune?"

"Uh…? Yeah, sure…" he mumbled, rubbing a purple spot on his forehead.

"See? Even Jaune agrees, and he still sucks his thumb when he sleeps," Weiss smiled knowingly. "This is just a quiet, normal village."

The door of the temple flew open with a bang and a man stepped outside, screaming incoherently and brandishing a wooden bat in each hand. His green hair was disheveled, and a similarly-colored tie was wrapped around his head, passing just above his nose.

Weiss shrieked and jumped on Ruby, who instinctively caught her in her arms. The man continued to scream for a good half-minute, while Ruby just watched, perplexed. Even Jaune forgot about his aching body and sat up to stare at the stranger.

And then the man stopped, cleared his throat, and tossed the bats away.

"Sorry for that! Precautions, I'm sure you understand!" he exclaimed, almost too fast to follow. "You see, I've theorized that smaller Grimm can be scared off by high enough sound frequencies, so by screaming sharply for a sufficient amount of time, it's possible for any human to drive them off – if they aren't shredded in half first, of course!"

Ruby nodded slowly. Weiss frowned and slapped her on the wrist, silently commanding her to let her down, as if she hadn't put herself in her position in the first place.

"Apologies, apologies! My name is Bartholomew Oobleck, head professor of the University of Vale!" he continued to speak, just as fast as before. "Though I prefer to go by Doctor Oobleck, thank you very much."

"Nice to meet you… Doctor Oobleck," Weiss said slowly. "I am Weiss Schnee, princess of the North Pole, second in line. The one currently getting up is Jaune," she cast a discreet glance at Ruby. "This is Ruby. She's… a friend…"

"Hi!" Ruby greeted cheerfully. "I'm the Avatar!"

She stumbled forward, rubbing the back of her head, which had been the target for one of Weiss' meanest slaps yet. Before she could whine about it, though, Oobleck closed in on her, inspecting her from every angle, as if she were some sort of long-forgotten relic.

"Uh… Hehe…" Ruby laughed nervously. "So, Doctor…? What are you doing here?"

"That is an excellent question! I, Avatar, have been traveling the Earth Kingdom from east to west, south to north, to learn about the effects of the Fire Nation's ruthless occupation," Oobleck explained. "A perilous task – I've nearly lost my eyebrows more times than I can count – but with unrivaled importance! Unfortunately, I've been stuck here for a week now."

Ruby stared anxiously as he stepped past and gestured at the wide, featureless space surrounding the village.

"You see, this village has been the target of countless Grimm attacks," he said gravely, his speech much easier to follow now. "Every night, without fail, they come. I've been told this has been the case for years. The villagers took to hiding in the temple's basement, sometimes even during the day."

"I understand now," Weiss looked up at the temple's bell. "Someone saw us coming and rang the bell. You thought another attack was coming."

"Precisely." Oobleck nodded.

"Ruby did raise quite the sandstorm," Jaune rubbed the back of his head and leered at the airbender. "She was _pretty quick_."

Ruby didn't acknowledge him in the least, her arms crossed and eyes focused at nowhere in particular.

"Can you show me where the others are?" she asked quietly, not looking at Oobleck. "I want to talk to them."

"As you wish," Oobleck said. "Follow me. We have food and water down there. The villagers are very generous; they will no doubt be willing to share."

Jaune's stomach grumbled loudly. Weiss would have slapped him, if she weren't as hungry as him.

Oobleck entered the temple and they followed in silence. The place was quite deserted, a layer of dust and dirt covering the seats inside it. An altar at the end was tilted to the side, as if something heavy had hit it. Behind it, the statue of an airbender with an arrow on his head. Ruby shivered at the sight.

The professor stopped in the middle of the room and tapped his foot three times. A square piece of the wooden floor was lifted from below, then pushed to the side by tiny hands. Ruby was the first to descend, followed quickly by Weiss, Jaune and, at last, Oobleck, who closed the hidden trapdoor.

The light of hundreds of torches illuminated the vast underground basement, its walls of rough stone and floor of granite. Dozens of faces stared at them, young and old, brave and fearful.

Ruby grabbed her staff from her back and slammed it on the ground beside her. Her silver eyes were hard and determined.

"Hi. My name is Ruby. I'm the Avatar," she announced. "And I'm gonna kill the Grimm that have ruined your home."

* * *

 After that brief speech, the villagers were more than eager to share everything they knew about the Grimm – their species, how they attacked, how many there were. Ruby listened intently, even as little children climbed on top of her, begging for her attention. She hadn't done anything yet, and she was already a hero in their eyes.

Once she had enough information, Ruby and her companions had a big, filling meal. Jaune almost collapsed after he was done. Then, they headed outside. Ruby sat cross-legged in front of the temple, waiting with uncharacteristic patience for night to come.

Jaune paced around, shooting constant, nervous glances at his redhead friend. Weiss was in a similar mood, though she tried not to show it so obviously.

"Okay, this is actually kinda creepy," he whispered beyond the airbender's earshot. "What's up with Ruby? She's acting _really_ strange."

"I agree. It's a tad… unsettling," Weiss noted. "I suppose she's just very determined to help those people," she looked at him sideways. "You know you don't have to be out here too, right? We can handle this by ourselves."

"Uhm… I have a sword, thank you very much." Jaune crossed his arms, offended by her not-so-subtle undertone.

"Understood. I'm just looking out for you," Weiss said, a hint of a smile appearing on her lips. "Not because I care about you, of course. I just don't want to deal with your mother's ire if you ever got hurt under my watch."

"Jeez. Thanks, Weiss."

The sun set on the horizon, and the moon rose in accord. There was little light in the village now, except for the reflection of the stars on the fountain and the bell. The wind whizzed by ominously.

Suddenly, Ruby stood up and brought her staff in front of her in both hands. Jaune shouted in surprise, much to Weiss' annoyance.

"They're here," Ruby said, her eyes glowing faintly in the darkness. "Let's party."

A moment later, an oddity became visible beyond the village's edge – a rising cloud of dirt and sand that drove steadily closer to them. Red eyes shone in its midst. Then, as it finally reached the village, the Grimm emerged, more than twenty large, dark wolves and bears – though the former were the vast majority.

Ruby sailed through the air towards them, swinging her staff over her head. A column of rushing air resulted from the movement, dividing the Grimm's numbers and sending some of them flying helplessly away. She continued to move, changing her weapon into its scythe form, and went to work on the scattered beasts.

Weiss ran to stand beside the fountain and commanded its water, creating long liquid tendrils to knock down and smash the Grimm that Ruby ignored. The unasked support allowed the Avatar to vanquish her opponents much more easily than if she had to watch her back all the while.

Meanwhile, Jaune stood at Weiss' side, making sure no Grimm sneaked up on her. It only happened twice, and he managed to dispose of them with his sword, even though his technique was rather clumsy.

Finally, only one Grimm remained, a bear-like creature of greater height than the rest, with bony spikes protruding from its arms and back. An Ursa Major, one of the most dangerous Grimm she knew of. Ruby sent a rush of air at it, but it refused to budge, and reached forward with a hand to grab her. She ducked under and slid around the monster, then jumped on its shoulders and set her scythe's blade below its neck.

With a might heave, she tried to cut its head right off, but the Ursa proved far more resilient than it should be. It roared in rage and took hold of the scythe, then pulled it down, dragging Ruby along with it. The Avatar fell to the ground, dazed and out of breath.

Weiss cursed and shot a heavy sphere of water at the creature, hitting it squarely on its chest. It wobbled momentarily, but found its balance soon enough and set his vicious eyes on Ruby again. However, the redhead rolled out of its reach, hatching a plan.

Ruby gestured with her free hand, and the water that now pooled below the Ursa rose off the ground and gathered around its legs, then froze solid, rendering the monster immobile. She shouted bravely and jumped, this time passing by her foe, while connecting her scythe with its neck. There was a brief moment of resistance before the Grimm's head fell, and with the rest of it, turned to smoke.

"Whew," Ruby huffed contently. "That was exciting!"

"If that's how you wish to put it, who am I to object?" Weiss examined the village carefully. "Was that all?"

"Yep. I don't think there's any more left. Doesn't feel that way, at least," Ruby put her hands around her mouth and turned towards the temple. "Hey! The Grimm are gone! You can come out now!"

A few seconds later, the door of the temple opened, and out came two men armed with fragile-looking lances. They looked around in wonder, then turned around and shouted excitedly. The rest of the villagers climbed out of the underground lair and rushed outside, laughing and spinning in circles with each other.

Ruby smiled contently and turned her scythe back into a staff. Doctor Oobleck walked through the crowd and laid a hand on her shoulder. He had a peculiar look in his eyes, something akin not only to admiration, but fondness too – the kind someone has for an old friend.

"You, Miss Ruby," he said. "Are one incredible Avatar."

* * *

 "So, is Jaune going to come back alive from this?" Ruby asked, partly amused, but also very concerned for her friend's well-being – physical and emotional.

Weiss smirked knowingly as she watched Jaune trying to flirt with some of the village's girls. He held himself like a hero, as if he had done more than dispose of one or two stray Grimm during the fight, showing off sword techniques – which he was making up on the spot – and smiling all the while. Two or three of the girls seemed to be showing actual interest, while the rest were doing their best to contain their laughter.

"He'll be fine," Weiss said. "They're just having fun. I doubt he'll do anything out of line. He's… learned that lesson before."

"Huh?" Ruby perked up in her chair. "What do you mean?"

"Well… He _might_ have tried to woo me once or twice back in the day," the princess examined her fingernails as if they were suddenly of utmost importance. "Of course, it didn't work. At all. As if showing up at a girl's door with a guitar he doesn't even know how to play would be a good idea."

"Wait, does Jaune have a crush on you?!" Ruby exclaimed, alarmed.

"Not anymore," Weiss smiled. "As I said, he's learned his lesson."

Ruby gulped. Whatever Weiss had done to Jaune, it didn't sound good. Maybe she had tossed him in the cold waters of the South Pole, or filled all his clothes with ice cubes? Ruby wasn't sure she wanted to know.

The redhead raised her cup of milk to her mouth and indulged herself with the drink. The villagers had been more than happy to house her and her friends for as long as they needed, and they insisted on holding celebrations in their names. That was why Jaune was doing what he was doing, though nobody had asked for it in particular.

Weiss seemed pleased, more so than Ruby could recall since their adventures had started. She had a frequent smile on her lips, and she was staring at the crowd around them with silent, but nonetheless obvious joy. Ruby had expected Weiss to order her to rest as soon as the Grimm were gone, but instead, she had grabbed a table at the inn for the both of them and hadn't said a word about leaving since.

"So," Ruby spoke hesitantly. "You look happy…?"

"What?" Weiss looked back at her and blinked. "Yes. I'm happy, I suppose. Why point that out?"

"Sorry! You just don't look that way very often!" Ruby kicked herself beneath the table. "I mean, not that I think you're boring or depressed or anything! You're just… reserved, I guess…?"

"Hmm. I understand what you're trying to say," Weiss tilted her head slightly. "Though you need to learn to express yourself better. If I didn't know you for as long as I do, I would have been very offended by your words."

"Sorry…"

Weiss gestured amiably with her hand. "Don't worry about it. I _am_ happy," she said. "We did just save an entire village from the reign of the Grimm. It's a good feeling. Although you did most of the work."

"Not true," Ruby sunk a little on her seat. "You helped a lot."

"I don't have a gigantic scythe to decapitate Grimm, and I certainly can't move as fast as you do," Weiss shook her head. "And let's not forget you used waterbending exceedingly well in the fight, for someone with but a few days' training," her eyes narrowed sternly. "I don't usually hand out compliments this easily, so don't try to be modest. You did well."

"A-alright," Ruby looked around awkwardly. Her cheeks were as red as her cloak. "I, uh, have a good teacher."

"Oh, I know that." Weiss smiled and took a sip of her drink.

Ruby proceeded to gulp down the last of her milk, hoping that would hide how flustered she was. It seemed to work, as Weiss didn't show any unusual reactions.

They spent the next minutes in silence, watching everyone celebrate in their own ways. In the inn, everyone was talking and partaking in the richest meals possible, to make up for lost time. Jaune had somehow attracted the interest of even more girls. And outside, the villagers were preparing to set off fireworks – one or two had already been launched preemptively, and many cheers had followed because of it.

Eventually, a chair was dragged next to Ruby and Weiss' table, and Doctor Oobleck sat down, holding a large cup of coffee in his hands.

"Hello, girls," he spoke quickly. "A wonderful, wonderful night, isn't it?"

"Indeed, Doctor," Weiss agreed. "We're glad we could be of help."

"And everyone is pretty happy too. A little _too much_ ," Ruby said meekly. "They're all telling me I'm awesome and stuff. It's kinda overwhelming."

"You _are_ the Avatar," Oobleck pointed out. "It's only natural for people to feel drawn to you. You're a symbol of hope and safety for everyone in the world – except the Fire Nation, I suppose. You should expect similar treatment everywhere you go, Miss Ruby."

"Alrighty, then," Ruby sighed. "Go, me…"

Oobleck looked at her oddly, much like before, when he had spoken to her after she had finished with the Grimm. Ruby didn't know how to react. On one hand, she wished he would stop doing that, and on the other, she felt… happy about it? Like she'd been missing that look – when she hadn't known him for a day yet…

"Tell me, Ruby, how much do you know about your past lives?" Oobleck asked.

"Uhm… I know their names, and their nations, I guess," Ruby frowned. "Why?"

"Every Avatar is a person of their own. I only wished to know how in touch you were with each of them," he shrugged. "Worry not! That will come with time! You haven't been the Avatar for too long, so there's no reason to expect-"

He was cut off by a sharp scream from outside. A roar rang through the night, and the door of the inn slammed open, a man stumbling in with a panicked expression on his face.

"The Grimm! They're back!"

Ruby stared at him with wide eyes, as if she couldn't believe what she had just heard. Then she jumped from her seat and ran out the door, gripping her scythe in both hands.

Everyone who had been celebrating outside was now running for the temple as Grimm appeared from every possible direction, taking form in swirling masses of darkness. Ruby grit her teeth and jumped high in the air, trying to assess the situation, but she was so panicked it was difficult to piece two thoughts together, much less form a coherent plan.

Then, time seemed to slow as her eyes fixed on one particular Grimm, the same Ursa she had killed before. It towered over a fallen man, his sword laying on the ground far out of his reach. The Grimm roared and raised its claws menacingly.

Ruby shouted and propelled herself towards the beast, building as much speed as she possibly could, hoping that she would be fast enough. With a resounding _crack_ , she slammed into the Ursa, which went rolling away, whining painfully. Ruby ignored her own aching body and swung with her scythe, summoning a mighty wind beneath the Grimm. It went flying high up the air, losing momentum seconds later, then crashed back down and turned to smoke.

Ruby sighed in relief and turned around, extending a hand to the fallen man… and in horror, realized she had been too late. Blood poured from his chest, a deep gash running from hip to shoulder. The light in his eyes was already gone.

She stood there for a long while, staring with mouth agape, ignoring everything that was happening around her. Only when a string of water whipped behind her, killing another Grimm, did she snap out of her trance. Weiss appeared beside her, looking frustrated and distressed.

"Ruby!" she yelled. "What are you doing?!"

"I-I'm…" Ruby gulped. "I'm fine."

"Splendid!" Weiss shook her head in disbelief. "Would you quit standing around and start helping, then?"

Ruby nodded and walked away, wielding her staff in front of her. Weiss followed, rapier drawn and ready.

* * *

 The last of the Grimm fell, yet this time, no celebration followed. The night was heavy with silence, and the air carried a stench so horrible, it was hard to breath.

Ruby's fingers were sore; she had been gripping her scythe far too strongly since the beginning of the skirmish. She couldn't stop herself from shaking, so in an attempt to hide it from everyone else, she sat on the ground and laid her back against a house, hoping the shadows would conceal her from searching eyes.

It didn't take long for someone to find her, though. Jaune looked sick, his face uncharacteristically grim, and Ruby could tell he was shaking too. He was still holding his sword on his right hand, as if he expected another attack to start at any second.

"Hey," he said quietly. "You okay, Ruby?"

"No," Ruby shook her head. "How many people died?"

"Just three," Jaune replied. It didn't sound comforting at all, and he knew it. "Weiss is helping the villagers. They're… taking the bodies to the temple. They'll bury them tomorrow morning."

Ruby nodded. Suddenly, she couldn't hold back anymore, and tears started to stream down her cheeks. Jaune sat down hurriedly and laid his hands on her shoulders, looking helpless and distraught at the same time.

"Ruby, it's not your fault," he said shakily. "No one could have predicted the Grimm would come back. I mean, that's crazy! They just appeared from out of nowhere!"

"I should have known," Ruby's eyes narrowed, her sadness turning into anger. "Of all people, I should have known!"

"Why, because you're the Avatar?" Jaune frowned. "Look, I'm no expert on Avatars, but I don't think they're supposed to know _everything_ about Grimm… or anything at all, for that matter."

Ruby looked away, her lips shut tight and fists clenched on the ground. Jaune watched her, dismayed. He had a feeling what he said had been meaningless to her - that he had missed the point of her words entirely. For now, though, pressing her for answers didn't seem like the best thing to do.

"Look, Ruby. We're all very… you know," Jaune sighed. "Let's go back to the Temple and rest, alright? Weiss will be worried if you don't show up soon."

Ruby nodded and got up. Jaune accompanied her, keeping a gentle hand on her back, and lead her back to the Temple. When they got inside, he tried to put himself between her and the sight of the bodies on the ground. They were covered in blankets, of course, but he still didn't want her to look at them at all, if possible.

They went down the trapdoor and into the underground, where almost all the villagers were gathered. It was silent, except for parents comforting their children with quiet words and people rolling around on the ground, unable to sleep after the horrific turn the night had taken.

Jaune had to keep Ruby from stopping as dozens of eyes fixed on her. They weren't accusatory or any such thing, but it felt that way for her. Jaune found a quiet corner for them and sat her down.

"I'm gonna find Weiss now," he said. "Just stay here, okay?"

"Where would I go?" Ruby asked, trying to sound at least a little bit fine.

"Yeah. Good point." Jaune smiled humorlessly and walked away.

Ruby closed her eyes, fighting the urge to curl into a ball and cry herself to sleep. The last thing the villagers needed was to see the great and powerful Avatar break down.

A few minutes passed before Ruby heard someone sit down beside her. She opened her eyes, expecting to see Jaune or Weiss, but instead, it was Oobleck. Disappointment was her first reaction, but once she saw how calm he looked, despite everything that had happened, she began to feel glad for his presence.

"Well, Miss Ruby, this is an unfortunate turn of events," he said. "But rest assured, all will be better, in due time."

"People don't come back from being dead," Ruby noted sadly.

"Yes, that is true. Rather grim, but true. Yet I still believe you shouldn't linger on that fact," Oobleck smiled. "Not when you can still be the agent of change in this village. Your work is far from over, Avatar."

"I know," Ruby sighed. "I'm gonna kill the Grimm again when they come back. And again. And again. Then maybe the villagers can move somewhere else and-"

"No, no, no! That won't do!" he interrupted her. Ruby flinched, fearing he would smack her on the hand or something of the sort. "You are going to learn how to dispose properly of the Grimm, and you will learn so from… your…self!"

"…What." Ruby stared at him, utterly lost. Oobleck didn't seem to understand what was happening until she started to gesture helplessly with her hands, trying to make him speak again.

"Apologies. I often forget not many are as informed in the matters of Grimm and the Avatar as I am," Oobleck cleared his throat. "You are already aware, Miss Ruby, that your line – your _spiritual_ line, that is, not your _bloodline_ – is a powerful and ancient one. The Avatar has reincarnated for centuries, if not millennia, and each lifetime brought more and more knowledge to the next. It wouldn't be wrong, then, to think of your heritage as not only a source of power, but _wisdom_ , too!"

"…Okay," Ruby blinked. "I'm still really confused."

"…You can speak with your past selves and learn from them," he crossed his arms and huffed. "Well, that wasn't nearly as complicated an idea as it first seemed."

Ruby shifted a little, feeling conflicted about the matter. Wisdom and knowledge were always good things to gain, but talking with herself, even if it wasn't _really_ herself, sounded very, very weird.

And yet, what other option did she have? She couldn't justify not doing something to help those poor villagers just because she felt a little _uncomfortable_. She didn't need to be the Avatar to feel terrible about even entertaining the idea. Lives and homes were on the line.

"Alright," she spoke determinedly. "How do I do it?"

"First, you need a spiritually-charged place. This temple should suffice. I theorized it once served for honoring the Avatar, conveniently enough," Oobleck said. "And, second, you meditate. That should be enough to contact the last Avatar."

"I… meditate?" Ruby repeated. Surely there was something more to it, something the professor had failed to mention.

"Yes. You meditate."

"That's all?"

"Well, you should think hard about your past lives, I suppose. But that's the gist of it. You meditate."

Ruby nodded hesitantly and closed her eyes. She crossed her legs and held her hands together, her brow furrowing in concentration. Taking cues from both her mother's and Weiss' teachings, she let her breath flow regularly, and didn't seek to ignore anything around her. She needed to be one with the universe. One with all. One with… herself.

 _Avatar Ozpin_?

* * *

 And suddenly, she was floating. Below her, was white. Above her, was also white. And surrounding her, was, well, even more white. After a few moments of confusion, she realized exactly what was around her: clouds upon clouds upon clouds. She was in the sky, after all.

The air shimmered in front of her, and then someone took form, a man not too young, but not too old either, with gray hair and brown eyes, holding a cane in his hands. A pair of black spectacles hung on the tip of his nose, and his eyes glimmered with fondness and amusement – or so Ruby thought; he was a hard man to read at first sight.

"Ah, Ruby," Ozpin spoke softly. "It's nice to finally meet you formally."

"Uh… H-hi?" Ruby gulped. "You're… me."

"Yes, you're correct, in a way," he chuckled. "Though I hardly know you, and, as I can tell from your expression, you hardly know me."

"Oh. I'm… sorry."

Once again, his eyes twinkled with emotion, and this time Ruby had no doubt that he was amused by her.

"There's no reason to be sorry. It takes time for any Avatar to grow used to all… _this_. Speaking with yourself? Your past lives? Reliving memories that are not yours, yet they _are_ yours?" he shrugged. "All will become natural, in due time."

"That's what Doctor Oobleck said," Ruby spoke absently-minded.

" _Doctor_ Oobleck?" Ozpin smiled. "Yes, he was always a clever individual," he shook his head and leaned on his cane, adopting a more serious expression. "Our connection is not so strong yet that we can speak for long, Ruby. Why did you call for me? What ails you?"

Ruby shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and was briefly distracted by the question of how she was putting any weight at all in either of them, if she was in the sky. Only when Ozpin cleared his throat did she focus on what was actually important at the moment.

"I'm trying to help a village get rid of a horde of Grimm that attacks them every night. I killed them once, but they came back, and… and they took some people. I think they'll come back again," Ruby frowned. "I don't know what to do."

"I see. Do you know what Grimm are, Ruby?" Ozpin asked.

"Of course," she nodded. "They're monsters."

"You're not wrong, but that's not all they are," he said. "Grimm are born from the negative emotions of human beings. Hatred, fear, jealousy… These feelings give them life, and drive them to keep living. That's why the Grimm often target settlements so viciously – their first and only instinct is to seek that which they yearn for the most and take it for themselves."

Ruby followed his explanation with ease, though she couldn't yet see the point of it. She already knew all that, as did most people in the world. It's what it took to survive, most of the time.

"You can surmise, then, that killing the Grimm only makes them stronger. It's only natural for humans to hate them, and to use that hatred as a driving force in the moment of attack, but that's what allows the Grimm to always come back. A vicious, bloody cycle," Ozpin's eyes narrowed. "But you and me, Ruby, are different. We cannot allow emotion to taint our spirit when we kill the Grimm. The world expects more from us. Only when you accept that will you be able to be the guardian you're meant to be."

"What?" Ruby asked, and despite her company, a hint of anger slipped in her voice. "So I'm _not_ supposed to hate the Grimm?"

"No, you're not," Ozpin smiled knowingly. "As hard as that may seem."

Ruby's gaze wandered over anything but her past self. A bitter feeling boiled inside her, but she couldn't ignore Ozpin's wise eyes, and she certainly couldn't deny he was right. They had learned that lesson over so many lifetimes already. How _could_ he be wrong?

"Okay," Ruby said with difficulty. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind. Just… stay focused, calm, all that stuff, when I fight Grimm?"

"Yes," Ozpin nodded. "Something like that."

"Alright," Ruby rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "I'll, uh, leave, then. Thanks for the advice."

"It's my pleasure. But, before you leave," Ozpin raised a hand for attention. "There is something I need to show you, yet that's not possible right now. As I said, our connection is not strong enough to sustain itself yet, and wherever your physical self is now, it's not helping much. Try to find someplace better soon. Perhaps a temple?"

"I _am_ in a temple right now, sir."

Ozpin smiled slyly. "A bigger temple, then," he said. "Until then, stay safe. I'll be waiting eagerly, Ruby."

* * *

 "Ruby! Wake up, you dolt! How could you ever fall asleep at a time like this?!"

Ruby opened her eyes and was immediately greeted by the sight of Weiss shaking her by the shoulders, while Jaune looked on apologetically behind her. Oobleck was nowhere to be seen.

"That was the weirdest conversation I've ever had in my life," Ruby spoke under her breath.

"What?" Weiss glared at her. "Don't tell me you were _dreaming_ , too."

"No. I was talking to myself," Ruby paused. "I mean, not myself, Avatar Ozpin. Even though he's me, but not really."

"Jaune," Weiss called emotionlessly. "Do you understand her?"

"Nope," he shook his head in wonder. "I'm lost."

"Look," Ruby spoke up. "I know how to deal with the Grimm now."

Ruby jumped to her feet and took her staff from behind her back. Weiss and Jaune looked at her as if she had gone mad. She couldn't blame them, really.

"Have they come back yet?" she asked.

"Yes," Weiss said. "They showed up ten minutes ago. Everyone's hiding here. I woke you up so we could go up there and kill them again."

"No need," Ruby grunted. "I'll do it myself. Just stay here."

Weiss opened her mouth to protest, but Ruby patted her on the head twice, as if she were a child, and the princess stopped in her tracks, completely taken aback by her sudden change of attitude. Jaune just watched in confusion and awe.

Ruby went to the trapdoor and climbed to the temple's entrance hall. Immediately a claw swung in her direction, but she ducked under it and rolled away. A Beowolf was there, seemingly drawn by the human presence in the underground, but unable to get there. Now, it was focused on her.

She shifted her staff into a scythe and dashed towards the creature, aiming for its head… but stopped at the last second.

_We cannot allow emotion to taint our spirit._

Ruby took a step back, dodging another swipe, and breathed in deeply. She could feel the dark presence of every Grimm in the village converging towards her, but she couldn't allow herself to feel anything about them. All her rage, all her grief - she had to let go of them.

Once, she had been a little girl, lost in her own little world with monstrous Grimm and scattered petals, but she couldn't be that anymore. She needed to be more – something no one else could, much less _should_ be.

She stepped forward and extended her scythe, touching the back of the Beowolf's neck with its blade, and pulled. A puff of smoke followed and quickly dispersed, as if it had never been there. She turned around and walked outside the Temple.

The Grimm that had been previously going towards her had stopped, their red eyes focused on her small figure. It was almost as if they were wary of her. Ruby just stared back for a moment, her face impassive.

Then, she jumped high, letting the air below her feet propel her skyward, then fell back down, slicing through two Grimm at once. The rest roared and lunged at her, but she was already prepared, scythe spinning and wind rushing in waves around her. She was like a miniature crimson tornado, and nothing could lay claw or fang on her.

The last Grimm stepped forward – the Ursa Major. Ruby let it come close, dodged its multiple swipes, then pierced its chest with her scythe. It died instantly, and disappeared.

Ruby waited a moment, hanging her head low, breathing in and out in even rhythm. Then footsteps sounded behind her, and she turned around to find Weiss and Jaune standing there, looking at her, astonished.

"Did you just… kill all those Grimm by yourself?" Jaune asked.

"Yep," Ruby nodded and rested her scythe on her shoulder. "They shouldn't come back again, if I did things right."

"And what _exactly_ did you do?" Weiss asked dubiously.

"The same as before," the Avatar replied. "But with a simpler soul."

A moment of silence passed before Weiss spoke again. "You will never cease to confuse me, will you?"

* * *

 True to Ruby's words, the Grimm did not show up again, and everyone was able to sleep peacefully through the night in their own homes. The villagers were skeptical, considering what had happened before, but when Ruby went and fell asleep in the middle of the village, they realized there was true merit to her accomplishment.

The following morning, the bodies of the three villagers were buried after a heartfelt funeral. Ruby still felt guilty about their deaths, but she was glad she had been able to keep her promise in the end. The village was safe, for good this time.

She refused to participate in any celebrations, though. She felt that commemorating the killing of so many Grimm was not very wise. Hopefully, Avatar Ozpin was smiling approvingly, wherever he was.

"And so, Avatar, we must part ways," Oobleck said as they neared the edge of town. "I think I'll head back to Vale and spread word about you. The Earth Kingdom, and the Queen, need to know the rumors are true. Our hero is back."

"That would be wonderful, professor Oobleck," Weiss said. "Hopefully that will mean we'll be safer, considering the Earth soldiers will know who we are."

"Yes," his stare hardened. "But, _ahem_. It's _Doctor_ Oobleck."

"Oh," Weiss took a step back. "Yes. My apologies."

"Thanks for the help, Doctor!" Ruby exclaimed happily. "And say hi to Glynda for me!"

The professor bowed quickly, then walked away, going in the direction opposite to theirs.

Jaune tilted his head confusedly. "Uh… Who's Glynda?"

"The Earth Princess," Ruby blinked. "Wait. How do I know that?"

"That's not true. She's the Earth _Queen_ , for thirteen years now," Weiss frowned. "Yes, let me repeat that question. How _do_ you know that, Ruby?"

"Uh… I think I knew her in a past life?" Ruby's eyes went wide. "Oh. _Oh_. I _knew_ her in a past life. _Eeeew_!"

She proceeded to knock on her own head several times, as if she hoped to somehow give herself a severe case of amnesia. Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last time, Weiss and Jaune didn't know how to react to the mighty Avatar's strange behavior.


	9. The Warning

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Nine: The Warning**

* * *

 "So, how big is Atlas again?" Ruby asked nervously. "Like, _exactly_ how big?"

Weiss shot her an uneasy glance before waving vaguely with a hand. She didn't know the answer to the question, and honestly, she was also nervous, though she made an effort not to show it. It was hard to stay calm when they were sharing a road with so many people – they could barely count how many there were, and it wasn't a small number at all.

As they got further north in the Earth Kingdom, their path inevitably led to the same destination as pretty much every other traveler in the country. Atlas held an extremely important spot in the Kingdom, effectively dividing it into two halves. It was like a gate of sorts, and anyone wanting to circumvent it would lose many precious weeks. The hostilities with the Fire Nation and the worrying growth of Grimm numbers only made matters worse.

"Very big," Weiss said finally, knowing that Ruby wouldn't rest quiet until she got an answer, even a meaningless one.

"With so many people going there, you would think it's the capital or something," Jaune mumbled. "Why _don't_ they go there, anyway?"

"I'm sure the road there is just as arduous," Weiss sighed. "Just keep moving. We'll arrive within the hour. And, Ruby, could you find a way to hide your hair? It's, well… _unique_ …"

Ruby gawked at her for a moment, wondering if she should be offended, before she realized what Weiss meant. Her hair _was_ strange, maybe. She hadn't seen that many people in her life, but none of them had had red and black hair _at the same time_. Improvising, she unclasped her cloak and wrapped it around her head like a turban.

"Do I look good?" she asked expectantly.

"I think you missed the point, Ruby," Jaune noted. "But, sure, you look good."

"Yes. Very charming," Weiss agreed sarcastically.

"Thanks!" Ruby exclaimed cheerfully, then tilted her head in wonder, almost ruining her disguise in the process as the makeshift turban swayed to the side. "Why do I have to hide, anyway? Atlas is an Earth Kingdom city. They're the good guys."

"That's very naive, Ruby," Weiss said. "Good guys or not, there are some people who will want to take advantage of your being the Avatar. It'll be safer if you hide who you truly are."

"Alright, then," Ruby nodded. "Sure wish I could help some of these people, though."

She could see that many of the travelers around them were actually refugees, most probably forced to migrate because of Grimm attacks, but there were many that sported burn marks and other similar injuries. Truthfully, the sight made her feel anger like she'd never felt before. It was astonishing to her that the Fire Nation still insisted on lying about the war.

They continued to walk along the road, the city growing ever closer. Both Ruby and Jaune were astounded by the sheer size of it. Its walls rose so high, Ruby was doubtful she could jump over it, even with airbending at her disposal. Behind them were towers that seemed to touch the sky, and from within the city, waves of smoke trailed into the clouds.

"Wow," Ruby said, awestruck, as they stepped on the bridge to the city and walked towards the gate. "I had no idea places like this existed."

"Me too!" Jaune whistled. "Man, this is already so impressive… I wonder how big _Vale_ is!"

"Ooh! Their walls must be twice the size!" Ruby exclaimed. "Actually, they have… double walls! So when the first one is brought down, there's another one!"

Jaune clapped his hands genially. "And when _that one_ falls, there's the _surprise third wall_!"

"Shut up, you idiots!" Weiss said through gritted teeth before elbowing Jaune on the side. "Do you _want_ to be barred?"

Ruby mumbled an apology and lowered her head, while Jaune tried to regain his breath. They stopped in front of the gates, were a pair of soldiers were monitoring the incoming travelers. Neither of them seemed happy about their job, so Weiss quickly scurried forward before her companions could ruin their chances – not that she needed much reason to do that in the first place.

"Your names, and why do you wanna enter the city?" one of the guards recited mechanically.

"My name is Snow, and these are Jaune and… Rose," Weiss gestured gracefully. Ruby gave the guard a thumbs up. "We seek somewhere safe to rest until we can go out again to fight the Grimm."

"Fight the Grimm?" the guard raised an eyebrow and scanned her from head to toe. " _You_?"

"What? Oh, you-" Weiss' face reddened with anger. "Do you think I carry this sword for show? Do you want to _test_ me?!"

"No, no! Sure, you can fight Grimm," he smiled. "And the weird turban-girl over there? Bet she gives them a mean whack in the head with that battle-stick of hers. Right?"

"Yeah!" Ruby nodded enthusiastically. "I mean… What did you just call my scythe?!"

The guard snorted and elbowed his companion, who was also cracking a smile now. He opened his mouth, presumably to belittle them again, when his eyes fell first on Jaune, then the sword he carried on his hip.

"O-oh, I'm sorry!" he stammered. "G-go right in, Mister Jaune! A-and ladies! R-right away!"

The three of them gasped in confusion as the guards pushed them beyond the gates and into the city. As soon as they were in, the guards retreated, as if they had seen the biggest Grimm in recorded history.

"What the heck just happened?!" Ruby shouted.

Jaune puffed up his chest and put his hands on his hips. "It seems that _Mister Jaune_ has finally been treated with the respect he deserves!"

"More like Mister Buffoon," Weiss grumbled. "The guards were just confused. That's all."

"Sure," Jaune chuckled. "You keep telling yourself that."

Weiss groaned. "We're going to be hearing about this for weeks, aren't we?"

"Yep! Congratulations, Jaune!" Ruby patted him in the back. "I knew your day would come eventually."

* * *

 Yang hummed thoughtfully as she scanned the cards in her hand, gears turning inside her head in an effort to find the best move to make. She had driven herself into a nearly unwinnable situation, but with a wit as big and agile as hers, she was sure she could make a comeback in a most spectacular fashion.

Unfortunately, her opponent thought the very contrary, and slammed his hand down on the table between them, drawing her attention back to him. "Would you play already?! It's been three minutes. Three whole minutes!"

"Sheesh. You don't have any patience, do you? Now I know why you suck so bad at this game," Yang rolled her eyes. "Fine. I summon a Squadron of Fire Snakes!"

She put her selected card down and smiled triumphantly. Her opponent just stared at her for a moment before sighing. "I attack you directly with all my minions and kill you," he said. "Okay, we're done. You can keep the prize. Have a nice day."

He walked off, obviously upset, while Yang looked at her cards in confusion, trying to figure out how she had lost. It simply couldn't be – she had trained for days to perfect her strategy. Days!

"Dad," she said seriously, knowing Taiyang was watching in a chair behind her. "We have an important task ahead of us!"

"Huh?!" Taiyang woke up suddenly, having drifted into sleep sometime during her fourth turn, despite the noise of the inn they were in. "What did you say?"

"We need to buy more cards," Yang decided. "He clearly won because he spent more money than me on this unfair game. In an even playing field, I would beat him to a pulp with my awesome card skills!"

"Ah, yes. You're absolutely right, sweetie," Taiyang crossed his arms in amusement. "Shouldn't you be worrying about more important matters? Like – boy, am I gonna regret bringing this up – catching the Avatar?"

"Shh. I got that under control," Yang smiled smugly. "I have people on every gate watching for her and the water princess. They're easy people to identify, even in a crowd, and I offered a mean prize for the first to tell me when they enter the city. Say it, Dad. I'm a genius."

"Sure. You're very bright, dragonling."

Yang glared at him, trying to discern whether he was being sincere or just humoring her.

"Your tactic does bring me one concern, though," Taiyang said. "Don't you think it's a little risky to bribe people in an Earth Kingdom city? General Ironwood's looking for us everywhere. He might get word of us through your, uh, _watchers_."

"Dad, I'm not dumb. I didn't give them my name, or yours," she sighed. "Is it really that hard to believe that I came up with a good plan?"

"Yes, actually. Not that you're usually stupid, it's just that… you're always tackling problems head-on, acting first and thinking later. It's a strange change of pace," Taiyang chuckled. "A welcome one, though. I'm proud, Yang. Truly, I am."

Yang lowered her head in an attempt to hide her giddy smile, then turned around to examine her cards once more. She didn't have much time for that, though, as the door of the inn soon opened and in came a man in ragged clothing, headed straight in her direction. It took her a moment to recall he was one of her hired informants.

"Miss, I just saw them. Two young girls, one with a red cloak, the other with white hair, and a blond boy," he said breathlessly. "They came in through the south gate and headed to the town center. I came as fast as I could."

"Good. Here's your coin," she tossed him a bag and got up. "See, Dad? Genius. And I still got to play cards."

"If only you had spent more money. At least then you would have won," Taiyang deadpanned.

They headed to the door, but before they could exit, Taiyang gripped his daughter by the arm, stopping her in her tracks.

"…Dad?"

"Are you sure you wanna go ahead with this? Capturing the Avatar?" he stared her in the eyes. "Think about it."

Yang looked at him confusedly, wondering where _that_ had come from, and shook herself out of his grip. "Yeah. One hundred percent sure. Let's go."

She walked out the door. Taiyang rubbed the back of his neck, sighed, then followed her.

* * *

 The streets of Atlas were busy, with people coming from and out of work, children playing around, and soldiers patrolling with grim expressions on their faces. Ruby had undone her hasty disguise, but luckily enough, no one paid her any attention – it was as if she was just another person amidst thousands of others. It was weird at first, but she soon found herself comforted by that.

"We'll spend a few days here," Weiss said, just low enough so that only Ruby and Jaune could hear. "Catch our breath, rest up a little, then exit through the north gate. From then on, we don't stop until we reach the tip of the continent."

"And how long will that take us?" Jaune asked, already feeling tired just thinking about the journey.

"Hopefully less time than it took for us to get here," Weiss replied. "Oh look, there's a nice-looking inn! We'll rent a room there."

They had arrived at the town's main square, which was somehow even more crowded than what they had seen before. A fountain sprinkled in the middle of it, and many people gathered around it for leisure and business alike. Shops and inns were laid out in a circle surrounding the square.

While Weiss and Jaune made their way to the inn, Ruby slowly came to a halt as her sight fell on a particular building. She wasn't sure why, but she felt a connection to it. It was made of the same material as the rest – wood and stone – but it reached high into the sky, to the point Ruby had to raise her head to see its tip.

"Ruby?" Weiss came back to her. "What are you doing? People are starting to look."

"Huh?" Ruby blinked and looked at her. "Sorry. I think this is a temple. To the Avatar, I mean."

"Oh, nice. More weird Avatar vibes," Jaune cheered dryly. "So why'd you stop to stare at it?"

"Well, Ozpin told me we had to talk, but I need a spiritually rich place to meditate in, first," Ruby shrugged. "I can't think of anything better than a temple for myself. Well, not myself, but-"

"We get it," Weiss waved her explanation away before it got too complicated. "Go do that. We'll meet up with you after our room's been rented. Please try not to get into trouble, okay?"

"Sure thing, Weiss! I promise I won't get into any trouble at all!"

Weiss closed her eyes and mouthed something, as if she was already regretting trusting Ruby. She took Jaune by the wrist and dragged him towards the inn.

Ruby turned and walked towards the temple, stepping inside with her hands joined behind her back, trying to appear inconspicuous, if only to please Weiss a little. She wasn't prepared for what was inside, though. Rows of statues lined the walls of the building, and she recognized most of them, Ozpin included – he looked to be the newest of the bunch. A set of stairs trailed up the building in a spiral, and she couldn't see the end of it, as much as she tried.

Someone cleared their throat behind her, and Ruby spun around quickly and assumed a better posture, embarrassed by the way she had been caught in. An old man in white robes stood there, staring at her contemplatively.

"Hello," he said slowly. "We aren't used to visitors as young as you, miss. What is your name?"

"I… Uh, Rose," Ruby answered awkwardly, remembering the fake name Weiss had given her at the gate. "I'm Rose."

"Hmm. That's an interesting name," he smiled. "How may I help you, young Rose?"

"Well, I'm a big fan of the Avatar and stuff. She's – I mean, _they_ are my idol," Ruby said. "I was wondering if there is somewhere in the temple where I could meditate. Somewhere very spiritual, where I could maybe feel a connection to them?"

"You _are_ an unusual youth," the man noted, squinting a little at her. "All visitors are welcomed to meditate here, amongst the statues of all the past Avatars."

Ruby looked around restlessly. She didn't feel anything different about the place – well, she was a little disturbed by the statues of herself, but aside from that, it was fine.

"Oh," her shoulders fell in disappointment. "I guess this is the best chance I'll get, then."

"The best chance," the monk repeated. "For what?"

"For… connecting with the Avatar?" Ruby gulped.

"I've worked here for five decades, young miss. I served Avatar Ozpin, and Avatar Ember before him, and yet I never managed to connect spiritually with either of them," he patted her on the shoulder gently. "What makes you think you'll succeed?"

"Uh… I'm the Avatar."

Ruby's eyes widened. She slapped herself on the forehead, immediately regretting her words. Weiss would be more than furious at her once she found out how idiotic she had been.

The monk seemed to not believe her at first, his eyes scanning her up and down, but eventually, he took a step back and bowed his head in reverence. "I see, yes. I knew there was something different about you when you walked in," he said. "My name is Wu-Lon, and it's my pleasure and honor to serve you, Avatar Rose."

"It's Ruby, actually," she blushed. "And you don't need to serve me or anything. Just tell me if there's anywhere… uh, better, for me to meditate."

"You seek to speak with your past lives," Wu-Lon nodded sagely. "Ember and Ozpin often retreated to the top of the building for that same reason. There, you will find a door locked to all outsiders, but you will have no trouble gaining entrance. Take as much time as you need."

Ruby nodded and looked up. A drop of sweat trickled down her forehead as she contemplated the long climb up the stairs. Finally, she decided on a quicker solution and took her staff, then blew the air below her, propelling herself upwards. She landed on the stair's rails, then jumped again, and again, and again, covering in seconds what would have taken anyone else minutes to travel.

Wu-Lon stared at her in wonder for a moment, before turning to draw the attention of his fellow monks in the temple. "Brothers! I have wonderful news!" he declared. "Spread the word: the Avatar has indeed returned, and she is right here, in this very temple!"

* * *

 "Okay, maybe I could have thought things a little more thoroughly," Yang admitted grudgingly as she and her father arrived at Atlas' main square. " _Maybe_ I should have told those guys to follow the Avatar and only come to me once they knew where she was. But how hard could finding really be, right?"

"She could slip out of the city before you find her," Taiyang said simply. "That's a likely possibility."

"Oh, yeah, that's a good point, Dad. Really made me feel better," she sighed. "I guess we're gonna need a miracle or something, now."

Just as she finished saying that, a familiar pair crossed in front of them – Weiss Schnee and… whatever his name was. The princess was gesticulating wildly with her hands while complaining in a loud voice, too distracted to notice her sworn enemies.

"I swear, we left her alone for ten minutes – _ten minutes_ – and somehow the entire city knows she's the Avatar and that she's inside the temple!" Weiss grunted angrily. "Could she be any _more_ obvious?"

"Knowing Ruby, she probably told them herself," whatever-his-name-was answered, seemingly amused by his companion's attitude. "Calm down, Weiss. She's the one and only Avatar, she can take care of herself. And it's not like there are firebenders in Atlas."

"Humph. I suppose you have a point. But let's join her quickly before she does something even more foolish."

Yang stared at the two in awe. Her chin would have hit the ground if it wasn't attached to the rest of her face.

"Well…" Taiyang looked almost upset by the turn of events. "…that was awfully convenient."

* * *

 Ruby's feet touched the final floor of the temple. The sound of her landing echoed on the walls, so empty the place was. There was nothing there except for a window to let air in, and a set of huge double doors made of thick metal.

"No trouble getting in, eh?" she murmured, then tried to push the doors open with brute force. "Uuurgh!" They refused to budge, so she took a step back and breathed deeply. "Well, duh. This is a room for the Avatar. I need to be smarter."

She thought for a while, then, on a hunch, pressed her palm against the door and closed her eyes. Metal rasped against wood, and when she looked again, the way was open. "Ahah! …I have no idea what I just did."

Putting the matter aside for the moment, she walked inside the room. The doors closed behind her, leaving her trapped. Luckily, there were many windows along the walls, so she wouldn't be blind or unable to breathe. Her steps were muffled by the cushions that padded the floor – she had a feeling this place was meant for sitting, not walking, so she did exactly that.

Immediately, she felt much more… alive. The air around her seemed positively charged with energy, flowing from outside and back, as if beckoning her to connect with the world. Her muscles relaxed, and unwittingly, a smile appeared on her lips.

"Alrighty, then…"

 _Hey, Ozpin_.

* * *

 "Ruby," the older Avatar appeared before her, floating in the clouds, just like before. "You didn't take as long as I thought. I'm pleased."

"Thank you, sir!" Ruby smiled. "Uh, should I call you sir? Is that weird?"

"Ruby, we are the same person. Between us, nothing is too weird," Ozpin chuckled. "You like the clouds a lot, it seems. Look where we are."

Ruby looked around and nodded mutely. She hadn't meant to bring them here. She didn't even know how she'd done it.

"Our connection is much stronger now," Ozpin noted. "Are you in Vale?"

"Atlas."

"Close enough," he said. "Let's get to the reason of our meeting. There is something I need to show you – something you already know, but don't remember. No yet. I will help with that."

He laid a hand on her shoulder. Suddenly, the world was spinning around them, blending into a colorful medley of light, almost like a rainbow… and then it stopped, as quickly as it had begun.

They were sitting cross-legged on the top of a mountain. Clouds trailed below them. For a moment, Ruby thought they were in an Air Nomad temple, but she realized that couldn't be, as there were no buildings in sight. The place was isolated, lifeless – disturbingly so.

Then, a woman appeared, trailing up the side of the mountain with flames propelling her by her hands and feet. Her hair was as dark as night, her eyes as red as the element she bended. Her expression was an odd mix of anger and impatience and something Ruby couldn't quite understand – maybe regret, or pain?

"Who's that?" Ruby asked Ozpin. "She looks familiar."

"That… is Fire Lord Raven Branwen."

Ruby gulped as she stared at the face of her enemy, the woman who had ordered the extermination of her people and threw the world into chaos. She didn't feel anger, as she thought she might. No, as the firebender's eyes passed over her – almost as if she could _see_ Ruby – the young redhead felt only fear.

Then another person arrived, landing on the ground with a soft _thud_ , lifting a cloud of dust around him. Another Ozpin stood up with a glint of guarded curiosity in his eyes.

"What?" Ruby blurted out, immediately feeling very foolish. "Oh. That's younger you, right?"

"Not exactly," Ozpin said. "This took place fifteen years ago, roughly speaking."

The younger Ozpin walked to Raven, leaning his steel cane on his shoulder, as if he were at ease. The Fire Lord watched in silence, arms crossed.

"Raven," he greeted. "An unusual meeting place, I must say. Whatever you have to discuss with me must be of utmost importance and secrecy."

"You are correct. As always," Raven turned around, as if she didn't wish to see his face. "As you know, Avatar, the Grimm population has been increasing over the years. The specialists of my court suggest they have _doubled_ since the death of Avatar Ember. It seems to me that you haven't been doing the job destiny entrusted upon you."

He only tilted his head, eyes focused on the back of her neck. Ruby could tell – she knew – that he was irked by her words, if not hurt by them.

"I cannot blame you, of course. You did not choose said destiny, after all, and frankly, the Avatar was bound to fail eventually. The Grimm are too big of a threat for one person to handle," Raven turned around. "And so, I am taking the initiative to protect this world. From now on, the people of Remnant won't have to count on the Avatar to guard them from the Grimm. They will have new heroes. Better ones."

"Ah," Ozpin nodded. "And how do you plan to protect them? By expanding your lands? Forming an empire ruled by an iron fist?"

"Yes. It's only necessary. I take no pleasure in it."

Ruby held her breath as Avatar and Fire Lord stared at each other, their eyes filled with emotion. Finally, Ozpin stepped back, opening space between them.

"You know I cannot let you do that," he said. "The four nations are meant to be just that – four. No people of this world shall have its freedom and culture overruled by another's. Back off this plan, Raven, and never speak of it again, or I will have to take action."

"I'm sorry, old friend," Raven closed her eyes. "But I'm taking action right now."

She thrust her hands forward, unleashing a maelstrom of fire that would have consumed Ozpin alive where he stood, if he hadn't lifted the ground before him to protect himself. Not missing a beat, he kicked the risen spire of rock, sending it flying towards the Fire Lord, who simply blew it aside with another powerful blast.

"Last warning, Raven!" Ozpin shouted, slowly lifting off the ground in a miniature tornado. "Stand. Down!"

Raven stood her ground, bracing herself against the raging wind. "I'm afraid I can't do that, Avatar."

Ozpin's eyes shone white, and he swung his right arm, willing the top of the mountain towards the woman. Raven yelled furiously, her voice twisted beyond recognition – and the fire in her hands turned black. She attacked again, and the flames obliterated everything in their path before striking Ozpin directly in the chest.

His eyes turned back to normal, and for a moment, he hovered in midair, staring in disbelief at the Fire Lord. Then, his control of the wind below him faded, and he fell, crashing painfully on the ground, which was now torn and jagged from the destruction he had wrought. He continued to fall, faster and faster, reaching helplessly with his hands, until he hit the ocean.

* * *

 Ruby gasped, her eyes snapping open. She almost fell on her back, so startled she was.

"What…" Tears stung in her eyes. "Ozpin…"

It wasn't as if she didn't know he was dead. It was obvious, of course. If he weren't… she wouldn't be who she was. But she had felt exactly what he had felt at that moment, while he was falling – he felt so afraid, and confused, and betrayed…

And somehow, he hadn't been able to do a thing. It was as if all the power he had acquired over his lifetime had just disappeared – no air, no fire, earth, water… All gone.

"Ozpin?" she called meekly, but nothing happened. She was too shaken to get in contact with him again.

She could only guess why he had wanted her to see his death. Maybe he wanted her to know who she was dealing with. If she had been afraid of the Fire Lord before… now she was _terrified_. Or maybe there was something more to the memory. Something he needed her to see.

More likely, it was a mixture of both. A warning of sorts, that the world was in even bigger trouble than she had thought, and no one was the wiser to it. It was all on her shoulders to make sure Raven Branwen didn't succeed in conquering Remnant and make of it whatever she wanted.

"Got it, sir," she whispered. "Got the message…"

Ruby nodded towards the sky, as if Ozpin could somehow see it, then stood up and walked out of the room. With her mind racing with a million thoughts, she jumped over the stairs railway, gliding gently down until she hit the first floor of the temple.

Her thinking came to a halt as she noticed the front door was shut, weirdly enough. Why would a temple be closed in the middle of the day? There was little illumination, except for the rays of sunlight coming from the occasional window.

"Wu-Lon?"

Suddenly, she was tackled to the ground, her back slamming on the wood with a resounding thud. Two hands held her arms down. Violet eyes stared down at her, just above an arrogant smile.

"Gotcha!" Yang said. "You won't escape me this time."

"You! You… jerk!" Ruby struggled futilely against her hold. "What are you doing here?!"

"Uh, capturing you? What does it look like?" Yang raised an eyebrow at her.

"Oh, right, that makes - I mean, you jerk!" Ruby growled. "Where are my friends?!"

Yang gestured with her head. Ruby followed with her eyes and saw Weiss and Jaune in a corner, bound by tight rope and with their mouths gagged. Taiyang stood near them, looking visibly uncomfortable at the situation.

"Look, I have tried to get this through your head twice already," Yang said loudly and slowly. "I _don't_ wanna hurt you or your friends. I just wanna bring you to the Fire Nation, where you'll be judged for your crimes. It's. Nothing. Personal."

"It feels personal!" Ruby exclaimed. "Haven't you got anything better to do with your time? Why don't you go kill some Grimm?!" Her eyes narrowed. "Or does your family only kill Avatars now?"

Yang leaned back, staring at Ruby in confusion. The airbender took advantage of that and kicked the ground below her, propelling both herself and her foe upwards. Ruby spun around and swung with her staff, sending Yang crashing back to the ground.

"Dad!" Yang yelled. "Catch her!"

Taiyang hesitated for a moment, then half-heartedly released a wave of fire at Ruby, who easily dodged it with a sidestep. He grunted and tried again several times, though she managed to avoid all his projectiles by a wide margin.

"Come on, Dad!" Yang shouted furiously. "Focus!"

Ruby swung again with her scythe, launching a sharp wave of wind, and Taiyang dove to the side. However, she had not been aiming at him, but at her friends. The wind cut through Weiss and Jaune's ropes, freeing them.

Weiss ripped the gag from her mouth and bended the water from her waterskin, whipping Taiyang in the back of the head.

"Ouch!" he yelled, hoping away from the princess. Haven't you heard about respecting your elders?!"

"Jaune! Open that door!" Weiss ordered, ignoring him.

"Yes, ma'am!" Jaune complied, running past Taiyang. Before he could get his job done, though, Ruby and Yang went tearing through the wooden door, sending splinters flying through the air.

The two girls rolled on the ground of the town square before standing up and facing each other once again. Yang bombarded her foe with several blasts at once, but Ruby spun her staff, neutralizing them as best as she could. The momentum of the attacks was still enough to knock her off balance, though, and Yang didn't lose the opportunity to attack again, gathering more fire around her hands for a stronger blow.

"Nope!" Ruby gestured with her hands, and the fountain behind Yang responded, its waters slamming at the back of her knees, sending the princess tumbling down.

"Unfair!" Yang yelled. "Do you _have_ to waterbend too?"

"Uhm… sorry?" Ruby paused for a moment. "But I'm kinda the Avatar, so…"

Yang jumped to her feet and kicked a barrage of fire towards Ruby, who jumped over it and Yang's head, before landing behind the blonde. "Bad idea!" Yang shouted, turning around and grabbing Ruby by the shoulder. "You might bend more than one element, but I have _muscles_!"

Ruby squirmed fruitlessly, realizing Yang was right. She wasn't nearly strong enough to free herself, and this time, Yang was prepared for any tricks she might have under her sleeve. Ruby kicked and punched, but Yang didn't let go – in fact, she did the contrary, slowly getting more control of the younger girl's movements.

Then, like a saving grace, a piece of rock hit Yang on her side, knocking her down. Ruby jumped back, and before she knew it, there were a bunch of soldiers surrounding the princess, closing shackles around her wrists and ankles.

"No!" Yang yelled. "Stop it, you – This isn't any of your business! Let go!"

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen," an unfamiliar man – at least to Ruby – said as he stood before the blonde, crossing his arms smugly. "Did you really think you could confront the Avatar in _my_ city and get away with it?"

"Ironwood!" Yang grunted. "I swear, if I get out of these shackles, I'm gonna… punch you in your stupid nose!"

"Oh, I'd be happy to see you try," Ironwood chuckled. "But the Earth Queen wants to talk to you. You should be grateful. You know I had other plans for you before."

Yang stared furiously at him, then at Ruby, her violet eyes turning red for a moment. Ruby gulped and looked away nervously, but… she couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her. Yang seemed genuinely distressed.

The soldiers dragged Yang away, together with her father, who was in the same situation as her. Weiss and Jaune joined Ruby as Ironwood approached her.

"Avatar," he said. "Although the circumstances aren't ideal, I am honored to meet you. I'm General James Ironwood, directly representing Earth Queen Glynda Goodwitch. She would be very pleased if you visited Vale and met with her personally."

"Uhm… Thanks," Ruby shifted her weight from one leg to another. "I'm Ruby."

"Yes, thank you, General, for helping us with… _that_ problem," Weiss interjected. "We will have an easier journey knowing those two are your prisoners. Unfortunately, Ruby must get to the North Pole as fast as possible so she can be taught by a waterbending master. We cannot spare the time to go to Vale."

"I understand," Ironwood said. "And you are…?"

"Weiss Schnee," she raised her chin proudly. "Princess of the Northern Water Tribe."

Jaune stood by awkwardly, waiting for his identity to be questioned, but Ironwood just looked past him and bowed to Ruby. "You are welcome in Atlas. As long as you are here, no harm shall befall you. For now, I must go – but I hope to meet you again, Avatar, and Princess."

He walked away. Ruby waved, while Weiss just sighed in relief and Jaune looked vastly displeased.

"No one ever asks me who _I_ am," he complained bitterly. "Why can't more people be like the guards at the gate? They were cool."

"So, Ruby," Weiss said, ignoring him. "Did you learn anything useful?"

"…Yeah," Ruby's eyes avoided her intently. "I'll tell you later. Right now, I'm exhausted. Can we go to our room in the inn?"

Weiss crossed her arms and stared at the girl in silence. She had been meaning to scold her for not only announcing her identity to the whole city, but also for almost getting captured by Yang. Yet Ruby looked genuinely tired, and from her expression, it was clear she had indeed learned something… and it wasn't anything good.

"Alright," Weiss said. "As you wish."

Ruby mumbled something under her breath before walking towards the inn. Weiss and Jaune shared worried glances before following her.

* * *

 "…Ozpin?"

This time, they didn't appear in the clouds. They were in the Southern Air Temple, with its familiar crumbled buildings and scorched grounds. A scent of roses reached Ruby's nose, but she knew she was just imagining it.

"Hello," the older Avatar said, sitting beside her in a bench. "I'm sorry for leaving you confused before. That memory was more of a shock than I predicted."

"It's fine," Ruby sighed. "I would have found out sooner or later, anyway."

"If you say so," Ozpin nodded. "Did you understand what happened to me? Why Fire Lord Raven is so dangerous?"

"Yeah. She took your bending away, right?"

"Yes. I cannot know if it would have been temporary or permanent, as… well, it resulted in my death right after. But we must assume the worst, for now," he said. "Perhaps the circumstance of my death affected you somewhat. You did not awaken to your destiny as early as most of our lives."

"Maybe."

Ozpin looked at her, sensing she had more to say. He didn't want to upset her, so he just waited until she was ready.

"I don't think I can do it," Ruby said. "Save the world, you know?"

"You can, and you will," Ozpin assured. "You are a remarkable young woman. I cannot imagine any challenge too difficult for you to surpass. And, besides, you aren't alone. You have your friends, Weiss and Jaune, and I'm sure you will meet many more in your travels," he smiled. "And you have me – all of us, for that matter."

Ruby was quiet for a moment, before a smile broke through her sullen mood. "I don't know, sir. Out of all my past lives, I think you're my favorite."

"Please," he scoffed. "You only say that because I'm the only one you've talked to."

Ruby giggled and leaned sideways to hug him. Ozpin raised an eyebrow at that, but decided to let her be. "This isn't real, right?" she asked. "I'm not really hugging you, am I, Ozpin?"

"It is real, Ruby. It very much is."


	10. The Cat Burglar

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Ten: The Cat Burglar**

* * *

 Night had fallen hours ago in the city of Atlas. The streets were layered in shadows that were broken only by the occasional torch or open window. Everyone had retired to their homes, tired after a day of hard work, except for one cheerful merchant…

"Hm-hmm, hm-hmm… Cabbages, cabbages, how I love my cabbages…"

For him, the day had proven particularly lucrative, as most of his wares had been sold at an incredulous, if not alarming, pace. He was a humble merchant, after all, whose only investment was cabbages, so it was understandable that something like that would overwhelm him.

He was so happy about his luck that he stayed at his stall until late, even after every other merchant had left. It didn't make much sense to do that – who ever went out at night to buy cabbages? – but he couldn't care less. He just wanted to spend time at his most beloved place in the world.

Unfortunately, that cheery mood of his was not fated to last. Faint footsteps sounded behind and above him, yet he didn't hear them over his little song.

"Cabbages, cabbages… Oh-oh-oh…"

A shadow skittered along his left and took one of his crates, then retreated before he could even notice it. As he turned to look and found the now empty space in his stall, his eyebrows shot up and his eyes grew wide with dismay.

"Huh?!"

The shadow appeared again, taking advantage of the turning of his back, and snatched another box. This time, he spun around just in time to catch a glimpse of two amber eyes and a pair of pale white hands.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Get back here! These are my cabbages!"

The shadow halted for a second. "Sorry," a feminine voice said. The merchant blinked, and the mysterious person was gone. For a while, he just stood there, staring at the darkness with a desolated expression on his face. Eventually, he took his hat off his head and fell to his knees, shaking from top to bottom.

"No!" He raised his arms above his head and cried. "Not. My. _Cabbages_!"

* * *

 "Goood morning, friends!"

Jaune catapulted out of his bed, his eyes open wide in alarm, and fell on the floor with a loud _bang_. He looked up dizzily, only to find Ruby staring down at him with a big smile on her face. Somewhere near, Weiss groaned in dismay.

"What the heck, Ruby!" Jaune rubbed his eyes, frustrated. "I was sleeping. Why would you scream like that?"

"You just answered your own question," Ruby noted cheerfully, then skipped over him to the window of their room. She drew open the curtains, letting in sunlight, much to her friend's further discomfort. "Come on, it's a beautiful morning! We can't stay cooped up in here and let it go to waste!"

"There is a proper way to wake people up, Ruby," Weiss said through gritted teeth. "Your way is _not_ the proper way."

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" Ruby pointed out, only to receive a glare from the princess. "Okay, okay. I'll let you two wake up at your own pace, then. I'll be waiting downstairs."

" _Thank you_."

The redhead exited the room and walked through the hallway, then down the stairs to the main floor of the inn they were in. Only then did she realize that, maybe, just maybe, she had woken up a little too early, after all. There was no one there except for the receptionist, who was almost falling asleep in her post.

Ruby drew her cloak closer to her and sat down on a chair, feeling a bit guilty about her actions. Yes, she hadn't meant to upset her friends, but she should have realized how they would have reacted to being woken up by her screaming at the top of her lungs. At least it served as a lesson for future occasions.

A few minutes later, Weiss arrived, looking much calmer than before. She nodded to Ruby, who was too afraid of saying anything that might anger her again. Jaune followed shortly after, though he still appeared as tired as before.

"Sorry," Ruby mumbled.

"Eh," he rubbed the back of his neck and smiled to her. "Don't worry about it. I'm just not a morning person."

"Since you were so generous as to wake us up especially early, Ruby," Weiss spoke clearly, joining her hands behind her back. "I suppose you must have _something_ planned, right?" She smiled knowingly, as if she already knew what the answer would be.

"Actually, I did plan something," Ruby took a moment to appreciate Weiss' dumbfounded expression before continuing. "Well, yesterday we looked at all the houses here, so I was thinking today we could visit the market. Isn't Atlas supposed to be a super-mega-rich city?"

"You could say that. It certainly draws a lot of commerce, but with the war being so intense around it…" Weiss shrugged. "But, yes, the market could prove to be an interesting visit. It's not like there's much else for us to see here anymore – unless you want to go to the temple again to be worshipped."

Ruby blinked, trying to determine if Weiss was being serious about that last suggestion. When the princess waved her hands at her and exited the inn, she decided to take it as a joke, just to be safe.

The trio walked into the city's main square, where the inn was located, and were immediately greeted by the sight of dozens upon dozens of stalls, with merchants shouting about their wares and ridiculous prices – both bad and good. Ruby almost fell on her face, so startled she was.

"Wow!" she exclaimed. "These were not here yesterday!"

"Obviously. It's the weekend. Since people aren't working, the merchants take the opportunity to display their wares to them," Weiss explained patiently.

"That's pretty smart," Ruby said. "Can I buy myself something cool? Pretty please?"

Weiss crossed her arms and twisted her nose, but Ruby only kept staring at her with big, pleading eyes. "Fine," she sighed. "But don't spend too much money. We have precious little of it."

"Yay! You're the best, Weiss!" Ruby gave her a quick hug, then ran off.

Weiss raised an eyebrow, fascinated by the redhead's behavior. Oftentimes, Ruby resembled more of a small child than a proper Avatar.

"Well, I'm gonna… buy some stuff, too." Jaune said awkwardly.

Weiss leered at him. "You mean you're going to hit on some hapless merchant girls?"

"I don't know what hapless means, but it doesn't sound that bad, so yep," Jaune nodded proudly.

"I would wish you luck, except I already know this will end badly for all. Mostly you," Weiss shrugged. "Just don't come crying back to me later."

"Weiss, you know I'm a perfect gentleman," Jaune made a short curtsy. "So, uh, have fun. Bye."

He walked away at a brisk pace, as if he had some very urgent task to accomplish. Weiss just shook her head in disapproval before setting off to find something interesting to do.

* * *

 "Are you _sure_ this is worth five coins?" Ruby asked, leaning against a vendor's counter. In her head, she wore a yellow and blue colored fur cap. "How about… three coins?!"

She spun around and opened her hand, showing the merchant three Earth Kingdom coins. He only stared impassively at her and crossed his arms.

"It's five coins," he spoke firmly. "No haggling."

"Whew. You're tough, I'll give you that. But can you say no to…" she spun again. "Four coins?!"

"No."

"…Four and a really shiny pebble I found on the road?"

"Five. Coins."

At that moment, Weiss appeared at her side. The princess examined the scene for a brief moment before sighing. "I don't know what I expected," she muttered under her breath, before tapping Ruby on her shoulder. "What exactly are you doing?"

"I wanna buy this cap, but it's kinda expensive, so I'm haggling. It's fun," Ruby leaned closer to her to whisper in her ear. "Just between the two of us, though, this guy is really stingy."

"Why do you even want to buy this cap? It's summer. It'll take months until it'll be cold enough to wear it," Weiss noted, then twisted her nose as she looked at the cap again. "And it looks horrendous. No wonder it's only five coins."

"Hey! I think it looks cute!" Ruby protested. "Plus, it's warm and fuzzy. I don't care if it's summer, I want it, and I want it now."

Though Weiss had quite a few opinions to impart upon Ruby regarding her terrible attitude, she decided to let matters go for once and make things easier for her – by resorting to her most used, and more effective, solution to all problems. "I'll buy the cap," she said. " _If_ you promise to never wear it in public."

"What?!" Ruby exclaimed in disbelief, but Weiss just crossed her arms, not to be swayed. "Sheesh. You're tough too. Alright, I promise never to wear it in public."

Weiss hummed cheerfully and handed the merchant five coins. He seemed rather happy - whether because he was finally free of Ruby's incessant haggling or of the hideous cap, the princess couldn't tell.

Ruby took her new belonging from her head and hid it under her cloak, not wanting to anger Weiss so soon after the transaction was made. Maybe in a few weeks, once they were far, far away from the city, she could risk putting the cap on… for a few seconds, then promptly hide it again.

"Where's Jaune, by the way?" Ruby asked curiously as they moved away from the merchant's tent.

"He's embarrassing himself, as usual," Weiss replied succinctly.

"Ah. You're being kinda harsh on him, don't you think?"

" _Harsh_ are the slaps he's probably receiving as we speak."

"What?"

"You'll understand soon enough."

They spent the next few minutes navigating through the crowd, inspecting some of the more interesting tents in the area. Weiss bought another waterskin, so she could carry more fuel, so to speak, in case of a fight. She also managed to successfully stop Ruby from buying three more fur caps. It was hard to believe, but those were somehow even more horrendous than the first one.

Just as Ruby started to eye _another_ cap, a commotion started in the middle of the plaza, drawing her attention, as well as Weiss's. A small group of merchants had left their tents and were now surrounding a pair of soldiers, shouting angrily about something. Ruby's eyes lit up with curiosity, and she decided to walk closer, with Weiss following warily.

"It happened again!" one of the merchants yelled. "I was about done with storing my goods for the night, when one of my crates went missing! It was filled to the brim with food!"

"You can't allow this to keep happening every night anymore!" another added. "At this point, I would be better off selling stuff on the road than in the city!"

One of the soldiers raised his arms high, attempting to calm the crowd down. "We understand your concerns, but there's nothing more we can do at the moment," he said. "We've combed every corner of the city, and the captain's increased the number of patrols at night. But we just haven't yet been able to catch whoever is stealing your goods. This kind of thing takes time, so if you could please show some-"

"More like _whatever_ is stealing our goods," a merchant interjected. "Thing looked like a living shadow. Never seen a thief like that, and I've been in the business for forty years. I'm telling all of you, this city's got a new Grimm problem," he shook his head knowingly. "I'm leaving for Vale at dawn tomorrow!"

"Me too! I don't want Grimm eating my stuff!"

The soldiers looked around helplessly, then shrugged at each other and ran away. Half of the merchants chased after them as an angry mob, while the rest returned to their tents as if nothing had happened. One in particular, though, was curled up on the ground, shedding tears for his cabbages.

Ruby turned to look at Weiss, and immediately the princess knew she was going to hear something she wasn't going to like.

"I'm gonna catch that Grimm!"

"And there she goes," Weiss pinched her own forehead and counted to ten. "Can't we spend _one_ week without you wanting to resolve some ridiculous problem that doesn't even concern us?"

"Hey, it concerns me," Ruby frowned. "There's Grimm lurking about, and I'm the Avatar, the only one who can-"

"Yes, yes. That only makes it worse," Weiss groaned in annoyance. "Ruby, Grimm don't steal merchandise! They kill people and destroy their homes – that's it. Those merchants are probably blowing the situation out of proportion."

"Nope!" Ruby crossed her arms and planted herself firmly where she stood. "Not hearing you. Gonna catch that Grimm, with or without your help."

Weiss tossed her arms up. "Fine! Have it your way," she said. "I swear, one day, you will apologize for putting me through so much trouble."

"It's not trouble, it's very important-"

"Yes, yes, I am aware. Let's find Jaune."

* * *

 When the sun came down and the merchants started to pack up for the day, the trio returned to the plaza, eager to capture the so-called Grimm thief – one in particular more eager than the others.

Quite surprisingly, Jaune was even more unhappy about the endeavor than Weiss was. He had had a bad day from the very start, after all. Being woken up by a screaming Avatar, getting played and slapped by _various_ Atlas girls, having to endure Weiss' smug attitude afterwards…

And now he was handed what was easily the worst role in their plan. While Ruby and Weiss kept watch at a nearby rooftop, he was stuck behind a counter – borrowed from a very grateful merchant – to serve as bait for the Grimm.

Well, at least he had cabbages to munch on. They tasted old and crummy, sure, but they were a welcome distraction from the darkness surrounding him.

"I sure hope they know what they're doing," Jaune muttered under his breath as he swiped the counter with a cloth in an attempt to fit more into the role of a merchant. It was good that it was so dark, or else anyone would have been able to see how nervous he was. "I mean… it's not like I couldn't handle _one_ Grimm. I have my sword."

He kicked his sword lovingly, it being hidden beneath the counter, just a second's reach away. He felt braver just knowing it was there. Of course, he was also blocking out the fact that he was whispering to himself in fright.

"Yes, sir," he swallowed dry and nodded. "You can come at me anytime you want, you e-evil, nasty Grimm. I'm not afraid!"

Something fell on the counter in front of him, making him jump so high his head hit the tent's ceiling. He landed and opened his mouth, preparing to scream at the top of his lungs for help… then realized there was a black cat sitting at the counter, staring at him quizzically.

He breathed out in relief. "Alright, false alarm," he reached to pet the cat's head. "Hey, buddy, you scared me big time. What's your name?" The cat slapped his hand away and laid down possessively on the counter. "Now that was just rude. I could kick you out, you know, so maybe you should think about acting a little more-"

A shadow blurred past him, leaping over the counter with a soft _thud_. Jaune blinked, and when he looked again, one of the cabbage-filled crates was gone. This time, he actually yelled.

Very, _very_ loudly.

"Coming!" Ruby streaked through the air, leaving her hiding spot in a rush. Her red cloak was easy to see in contrast with the nighttime sky. "You okay, Jaune?!"

"Yeah!" he exclaimed when she landed in front of him. "The Grimm was just here! It took one of the crates!"

"Which way did it go?!"

"Uh… that way!" He ducked behind the counter. "Go, before it's too late! I'll protect the cat!"

Ruby ran at the direction he pointed to, raising a cloud of dust behind her because of her incredible speed. Unfortunately, catching the Grimm wouldn't be so easy. She couldn't hear any characteristic growls or roars, and the darkness was making it nearly impossible for her to see.

She narrowed her eyes, putting all her effort into scanning the space in front of her – and saw it, just turning the corner, a shadowy form not much bigger than herself.

"Got you!" Ruby skidded around the corner, drawing her weapon from her back, already in scythe-form. The blade cut through the air with a sharp noise as it made its deadly arc.

The Grimm let go of the crate and rolled on the ground, just in time to avoid having its head cut off. Ruby took one step closer, raising her scythe again. Remembering her past lessons, she closed her eyes and cleared her mind of all corrupt emotions, or else the Grimm would reform shortly.

"Please, don't!"

Ruby opened her eyes in shock and looked down. Lying on her back, where a Grimm should have been, was a girl with raven hair and amber eyes. A pair of cat ears stuck out at the top of her head, though they were almost folded flat against it, as if she were scared.

"What?!" Ruby gasped and stepped back, dropping her scythe. "You're – you're not a Grimm!"

The girl looked from her, to the fallen weapon, and then the crate she had forfeited beforehand. Finally, she jumped to her feet and kicked Ruby in the stomach, sending her skidding back, out of breath, and then turned and ran away, disappearing in the shadows.

Ruby sat down, trying to wrap her head around what had just happened. Her silver eyes were wide as she stared into the darkness. She had come too close to making a horrifying, irreparable mistake.

Footsteps sounded behind her. A cold hand fell on her shoulder. "Well," Weiss said. "Did you get your Grimm?"

"It… wasn't a Grimm…" Ruby muttered.

"What a surprise," Weiss seemed to notice something was wrong, as her smugness was cut short. "Ruby, what happened?"

Ruby just stared at her in silence. Weiss frowned and wrapped a hand around her right arm, helping her to her feet.

"Come on. Let's go back."

* * *

 The two girls reunited with Jaune, who was still 'guarding' the stray cat dutifully, then went back to the inn. The first floor was almost empty, with only a few customers dining late. Weiss moved to a table and sat Ruby down, before taking a seat herself.

"Tell me what happened," the princess ordered. It was clear by her tone of voice that she wouldn't accept silence any longer.

"The thief… wasn't a Grimm," Ruby replied hesitantly. "It was a girl. I almost killed her."

"Oh. Well, I _did_ warn you that it couldn't be a Grimm," Weiss crossed her arms, but she didn't actually look upset. "What did she look like? If you give a description, the guards might be able to track her down and catch her in daylight."

"Well, she looked a little older than me. Maybe your guys' age," Ruby said. "She had dark hair, and… Oh, yeah, she had cat ears too. That's all I remember."

"Cat ears?" Weiss frowned. "I see. Our thief is a faunus, then."

"A _what_?" Ruby frowned confusedly.

Weiss looked at her as if she had just asked what a bird was. Even Jaune looked stunned.

"Ruby, you… don't know what a faunus is?" Jaune asked slowly, making sure they were communicating clearly.

"I have no clue what that is," Ruby replied in earnest, looking from him to Weiss innocently. "Maybe if you explain, I'll remember something?"

"But that's…" Weiss cut herself short, once more being reminded that Ruby had had a very different upbringing that could hardly be compared to anyone else's. "A faunus is… a… _different_ kind of person."

"Remember Velvet, from Coffee Island?" Jaune contributed. "She's a faunus. That's why she has rabbit ears."

"Oh! I thought that was normal," Ruby said. "I guess we mustn't have seen a lot of faunus during our travels, then, or else I would have asked. Man, this sounds neat," she smiled giddily. "So they're part animal or something? Are there wolf faunus? Bear? _Frog_?"

"Yes, Ruby, there are many different kinds of faunus," Weiss said, sounding very frustrated. "Honestly, how could you not know…"

Ruby sank a little in her seat, wishing Weiss would give her a break. It wasn't like it was her fault she hadn't had people to teach her about this stuff.

Or… well…

"So," Ruby said, shaking her head and focusing back on the issue at hand. "Why do you guys think that girl was stealing so much food? She didn't look _that_ hungry."

"It's just natural," Weiss bit her lip, now looking guilt-stricken. "Forget I said that. Maybe she's stockpiling for the winter?"

"Stockpiling cabbages?" Jaune smiled. "Eh, I don't think so."

"There's gotta be a good reason. People don't steal just for the fun of it," Ruby declared, getting up with determination. "I'll get to the bottom of this!"

Weiss opened her mouth to object, but a moment later, she just shook her head and decided to let Ruby do as she wanted. "Knock yourself out. Just try not to get into trouble."

Ruby nodded seriously, then marched out of the inn.

"She's totally getting into trouble." Jaune said.

Weiss sighed. "Yes. Sincerely, I don't know why I bother."

* * *

 Only once she walked to the center of the Atlas plaza did Ruby realize she had no idea how to find the thief. The guards had been searching for her for days, so what chance did Ruby stand? She was the Avatar, not a detective.

To make matters worse, it was nighttime and the sky was featureless, as if the clouds were conspiring to hide the light from the stars and the moon. Ruby crossed her arms and blew a strand of hair away from her eye, thinking about her problem.

Unfortunately, she couldn't very well concentrate on her search. Her mind was more occupied with thoughts of faunus – the cat thief in particular. She hadn't looked like an evil person, at least to Ruby's eyes. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but she even looked a little sorry for her actions.

It was unfair, Ruby decided. She couldn't think of a single legitimate reason why the girl had been forced into thievery, especially in a place like Atlas. It was such a nice city, with so many opportunities for everyone… And surely people there were willing to help others in need…

Or not. Not when it came to faunus.

The world seemed a lot greyer now, and Ruby couldn't help but feel resentful of it. Not for the first time, not really, but this time, it wasn't because she thought it was too big for her to protect by herself, or because of the things it had taken away from her.

Maybe, just maybe, Remnant did not deserve an Avatar.

"Avatar Ruby?" A voice woke her from her thoughts, and Ruby noticed she had stopped just before the entrance to the Avatar's temple. Standing in the doorway was Wu-Lon, the monk she had met previously. "Awake at such an hour?"

"Uh, yeah," Ruby rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously. "I'm looking for someone. No luck so far, I'm afraid."

"Oh? I'm sorry to hear that," Wu-Lon said. "Perhaps you could seek guidance from Avatar Ozpin? He was an expert on finding people. In fact, I believe all your incarnations were."

"Huh?"

Wu-Lon smiled patiently, turned around and walked back into the temple, gesturing for her to follow. Ruby did so anxiously, not wanting to waste any time, but also knowing whatever Wu-Lon had to say would probably be worthwhile.

"The Avatar is not only the master of the four elements and the banisher of all Grimm," the monk said, then stopped and gestured for her to sit. Ruby looked at him confusedly, but complied nonetheless. "She or he is also a link between Remnant and its people. As such, if you focus on that connection, gatherings thoughts of the person you seek in your mind, you might be able to find them."

"Really?!" Ruby asked excitedly. "That's so sweet! …And convenient."

"Well, you also need a spiritual place. Seeing as how you're in your own temple already, that shouldn't be a problem," Wu-Lon chuckled. "And, yes, it is very convenient."

Ruby crossed her legs and closed her eyes, concentrating on her memories of the faunus thief. Cat ears, dark hair, amber eyes… How nimbly she moved, how she melded into the shadows… Her voice when she called for mercy…

Suddenly, Ruby's eyes snapped open, glowing silver. She felt as if she was separated from her physical body, becoming a tendril of energy that raced through the earth, below the streets and buildings of Atlas, until she stopped and shot right back to the surface.

There she was, the cat faunus, carrying a plate of food in her hands. She looked at ease, a small smile gracing her face, as she deposited the plate on someone else's lap. Ruby couldn't make out the stranger's features, only a shadow, but they raised their arms and shook them with joy.

"Got her," Ruby blinked, her eyes returning to normal. She stood up and smiled widely. "Thanks, Wu-Lon!"

"I am always happy to help, Avatar," the monk said. "I've been doing it for decades, after all."

Ruby nodded and ran out of the temple, eager to find the faunus again.

The way came naturally to her, even though her vision had lasted but a few seconds. It was as if her very soul was guiding her. In a matter of minutes, she was standing before an old building at the edge of town, almost touching the walls, where most people would probably never come across it.

Ruby took a deep breath and opened the door, stepping inside carefully. The light of a torch showered her face, making her eyes sting for a moment. Then, she heard gasps and soft cries.

The next thing she knew, she was rolling on the ground, her left cheek hurting from an unexpected hit. Ruby kneeled and looked up in surprise, only to find the tip of a blade hovering in front of her nose.

"Why are you here?" the cat faunus asked, her voice like a hiss. She was holding her sword so tightly, the knuckles on her hand had turned white. "How did you find us?"

"I-I'm the Avatar! Master of four elements, Grimm slayer? You know, the Avatar!" Ruby squealed in fright. "Could you maybe not point your sword at me?"

"No," the girl's eyes narrowed. "I know you're the Avatar. Everybody knows what you look like. It doesn't answer why you're here."

"I… well…" Ruby gulped. "I just wanted to know why you're stealing from people."

The thief continued to stare at her, as if she were deciding if Ruby was being serious or not. Finally, she took a step back and sheathed her sword, then gestured around the room.

Ruby's lips parted as she realized for the first time that there were other people in the house, sitting on the ground with plates of food on their laps. They all looked younger than her by a significant margin.

"They're why," the thief said bitterly. "Can you leave now?"

"I don't understand," Ruby frowned. "You're feeding them?"

"Evidently. Why else would I steal so much food? Do I look that hungry to you?"

Ruby's shoulders fell, and she stared at her feet silently. The thief shifted her weight from one leg to the other, then shook her head, as if she regretted her words.

"Sorry. You don't look like you have bad intentions. I'm just… not very fond of people intruding on my business," she said. "My name's Blake."

"That's cool," Ruby muttered. "Mine's Ruby."

"Yeah. I knew that too," Blake smiled slightly. "Can we move this outside?"

Ruby nodded, walking out of the building. Blake followed her and closed the door behind her.

"Look, I know why you're here, and I understand. Stealing's wrong," Blake sighed. "But I didn't have any other choice."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't usually steal from people. I travel from place to place, and I know how to get food for myself. But when I came to Atlas, I met these children…" Blake clenched her fists and pressed them to her sides. "They barely had anything to eat. No one cared to help them, just because they're faunus. I couldn't just leave them to starve."

" _No one_ helped?" Ruby asked, incredulous.

"No one."

Ruby gritted her teeth. She just couldn't believe what she was hearing, and that she had been so clueless about something that serious for so long. She didn't like war, but at least she understood it, somewhat. This blatant prejudice against faunus, though? She couldn't begin to comprehend it.

"I'm used to it," Blake muttered. "But they're just kids, hungry and scared and alone. A little stealing is justified, right? So they won't suffer."

"Absolutely not," Ruby said immediately. "I'm going to do something about it!"

Blake's eyes widened, and she turned to Ruby, her hand flying to the hilt of her sword. Before she could draw it, however, Ruby held her by the shoulders, a determined glint in her eyes.

"Have you ever asked for help at the temple?"

"What?" Blake muttered. "No. Why would I? They wouldn't care to help faunus."

"Aren't you being prejudiced now?" Ruby noted. "The monks will be more than happy to help. I just need to ask them."

"Well… I'm not holding my breath," Blake said. "But if you're so confident…"

Ruby smiled. "I'll go over there right now, then come back with news!"

The redhead waved cheerfully, then sprinted away, parting the air before her. Blake watched in silent awe, before going back inside, a little smile appearing on her face.

For the first time in years, she was feeling hopeful about something.

* * *

 "Monkey-bats bite me," Weiss said admiringly. "You actually did it."

Ruby joined her hands humbly behind her back, though the effect was a bit ruined by the smug smile on her face.

It was just before midday, and Blake had arrived with her protégés at the temple. The kids looked anxious, their eyes darting around constantly, as if they expected to be jumped at any moment, but Blake encouraged them to keep moving.

Wu-Lon and his colleagues were surprised by Ruby's request, but not any more than they were anguished about the misery that had been going on just under their noses. It had taken no argument from the Avatar to get them to agree to house and feed the children.

"Still, I have to say," Weiss cleared her throat. "I told you from the very beginning. _It's not a Grimm, Ruby. Grimm don't steal_. But _no_ , you just _had_ to insist."

"Hey!" Ruby protested. "You had no idea it was a faunus either!"

"You didn't ask for theories," Weiss said haughtily. "But whatever makes you feel better."

Ruby huffed with frustration, preparing an angry rebuttal, but before she could finish it, Weiss smiled and hit her playfully on her shoulder.

"It was just a joke," Weiss said. "Good job, Ruby."

Ruby's face blended in with her cloak. A playful Weiss was something she was not used to. "T-thanks!" Much to her discomfort, Weiss continued to stare at her, and her face did not get any less red. In fact, she could feel it getting even more so. "U-uh uuuh…"

"Hey, guys!"

Ruby let out a sigh of relief as Jaune appeared suddenly at their side, sporting a wide smile.

"Man, it's so bright!" he exclaimed, looking at the sky. "Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"

"I put you through a lot yesterday," Ruby said. "You deserved a little more sleep than usual."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "And by a little more, she means three hours."

"I think you're just jealous Ruby cares so much about me," Jaune said, puffing his chest.

" _Right_. Or maybe I know she simply didn't want you whining for the rest of the day again."

Ruby shook her head and walked away from the two, leaving them to their bickering. She approached the faunus, who were settling in, the monks explaining their sleeping and eating arrangements.

Blake was standing outside, and though she was smiling, Ruby still noticed how on edge she appeared. In the light of day, her cat ears were more noticeable than ever, and most people that passed by stared at them. Ruby definitely understood how Blake felt about that.

"Hey," the Avatar greeted. "Aren't you going to join them?"

"The children? No," Blake said. "Like I said, I can manage for myself. And, no offense, I'm not exactly eager to be cared for by a bunch of monks."

"They're nice monks," Ruby argued. "Avatar monks!"

"Good point," Blake chuckled. "The answer is still no."

"Hmm. Maybe you can come along with us, then?" the redhead said. "We're going to the North Pole so I can learn waterbending from a true master. I think Weiss and Jaune would enjoy your company. I know I would."

Blake looked over Ruby's shoulder, to where Weiss and Jaune were still bickering. "Thank you for the offer, but… I'm more comfortable on my own."

"So where will you go?"

"South, maybe. I have a… friend, I'd like to reunite with. But I'm not sure. All I know is that I'm done with Atlas," Blake turned around and started to walk away. "Goodbye, Ruby. It was… nice, meeting you."

"Don't say that!" Ruby exclaimed. "We'll meet again. I'm sure of it!"

Blake paused, then turned to look at her one last time.

"I hope you're right," she smiled. "See you around, Ruby."


	11. The Storm

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Eleven: The Storm**

* * *

 North of Atlas, just a couple of days of travel away from the great city, existed a lonely village that had been founded by the side of the road hundreds of years ago. All manners of people passed there, from merchants to troubadours, soldiers to scholars, and, every once in a while, an Avatar.

The villagers had a custom of holding presentations of arts and storytelling once a night every month. It was an attraction that was both lucrative for its participants and enjoyable to the travelers who chose to stay and watch. Luckily, Ruby and her friends had arrived just that night.

"And so, the great fish rose from the sea and declared: _This is your first warning! Cease your greediness and your hatred; no home will these find in my kingdom. No more, I say!_ And the great fish dove back to its crystal palace and laid to rest. For years, the men and women kept their peace, but it was not meant to be…"

Weiss sighed and leaned forward, resting her head on her hands. She cast a discreet look at Ruby, who was sitting at her side, eyes wide with fascination as she listened to the storyteller. Judging by her face, the man could have been talking about world peace and unending love; but really, it was just a story Weiss had heard so many times, she had lost count long ago.

"Ruby," Weiss whispered. "This story is not that great. Don't expect too much of the ending, you'll only be disappointed."

Ruby pressed a finger to her lips and shushed her without even turning to look. Weiss huffed and looked to the other side, only to be greeted by the embarrassing sight of Jaune staring dreamingly at the girls of the village.

"Jaune!" she hissed. "For goodness' sake. Keep your eyes to yourself!"

"W-what?" He straightened his back and fixed his eyes on the storyteller. "Ah, yes, the great fish. What a nice, original story that I am listening to with absolutely no distractions!"

Weiss shook her head slightly. "Good enough. But I'll be watching you."

Ruby shushed again, only much louder this time. Weiss lowered her head and pursed her lips, actually feeling a little guilty about the noise she was making. Luckily for her, she wouldn't have to endure the story for much longer, as it had finally reached its final act.

" _This is your third and last warning_ , the great fish said. _Wrong my brethren once more and you shall pay the ultimate price_ ," the storyteller shook his head sadly. "Decades passed, and the men and women of the villagers did not overstep their boundaries. But alas, they forgot, and one final time, they took to the great fish's sea and hunted its brethren for their meat."

"Oh no!" Ruby exclaimed, her voice muffled behind her hands.

"When they returned to their village, they found it not as they had left it. The land was rotten and cracked; their wells were dry; and their crops had withered and died. The ultimate price had been paid," the storyteller crossed his arms. "And that's why you shouldn't eat fish in excessive quantities."

He bowed and left the stage. Ruby just stared at the spot he had just been standing on, one of her eyes twitching in disbelief.

"I did warn you," Weiss said with a remarkably smug smile on her lips.

"The moral of the story doesn't even make sense," Jaune frowned. "I mean, a significant portion of the world's population lives on the North and South Poles, where conditions are too harsh for the existence of many meaty land animals, meaning fishing is their primary way of feeding themselves. So why discourage it?" he paused. "It's just dumb."

Ruby and Weiss just stared at him, wondering when he had been replaced with a genius without their noticing it. For his part, Jaune only looked down at his own nose, trying to see if there was something there drawing so much attention to him.

The bizarre moment was interrupted by another storyteller's arrival at the stage. "Ladies and gentleman! My name is Bard, and it is my pleasure to have so many of you here tonight," he leaned forward and smiled. "Now, are you ready to hear the tale… of the Avatar?"

Ruby sat up straight, her shoulders rising and eyes widening in expectation. Suddenly, it felt like the only thing in the world that mattered was that storyteller. She was so focused on him that she failed to notice the way the Earth soldiers standing guard nearby shifted their weight and shot uncomfortable looks at Bard. It didn't escape Weiss' notice, though, and she closed a hand around Ruby's wrist.

"Ruby," she whispered. "Let's go. We're tired, and there's a storm-"

"No." The response came so short and firm, Weiss actually let go and shut her mouth, feeling lost, if not a little hurt.

Bard went on to tell his audience of who the Avatar was: the master of all four elements; the link between the nations; the world's first and most powerful line of defense against the Grimm.

He told of Avatars past, calling some by name, while others could only have their actions recounted. Ruby felt herself filling with pride as she recognized some of the tales. Yes, she couldn't remember them exactly, but she knew they were a part of her.

"The Avatar was the best in mankind. No doubt, the world we know today would be a much different place if not for them. A worse place, I dare say," Bard smiled bitterly. "But is that not the truth already? For the Avatar… failed us all."

Gasps rose from the crowd, the travelers all shocked by the sudden shift of tone in his tale. Ruby, however, stayed silent, her eyes losing their previous brightness. A hand touched her on her arm, but she paid it no mind.

"Yes. That's right," Bard sighed tragically. "Fifteen years ago, Grimm all around the world launched a massive attack on every nation. The peoples of the Earth Kingdom are strong; they fought them off valiantly. The Water Tribes have homes that are like natural fortresses, and that helped them survive too. And the Fire Nation, well, we have all seen what they're capable of," he paused. "But the Air Nomads? They were a gentle people. When the Grimm came for them, they stood no chance. One by one, they were all killed. And where was the Avatar?"

The crowd was filled with agitated whispers, until one travelers rose from his seat, a scowl marking his face. "He was nowhere! He left them to die!" He looked away. "I had many dear friends among the Air Nomads. And yet the Avatar…"

"Yes. And now they say another Avatar has awakened," Bard scoffed. "Ladies and gentlemen, don't let your hopes be rekindled. She might claim to be our guardian, but in the end, she'll turn her back on us. She's no friend of ours."

Soon, the whole crowd was engaged in a rowdy discussion with the storyteller. In the middle of them, Ruby sat still, her gaze locked at nowhere in particular. She felt as if a cold blade had pierced her back, and was now twisting and turning, slowly making way to her heart.

A drop of water fell on the tip of her nose, and she blinked. Weiss was standing before her, pulling her to her feet, while Jaune glared at the people surrounding them.

"It's raining," Weiss said in a small voice, pointing to the gray sky above them. "Let's go, Ruby. We can rent a warm room at the inn-"

"No!" Jaune interjected. "We're not staying in this stupid village."

Weiss opened her mouth to argue, but her will faded as she scanned the crowd. "You're right. We'll find shelter along the road."

* * *

 Yang was awakened by thunder. Her moving cage came to a halt, then was dropped to the ground unceremoniously, her back clashing painfully against the steel bars behind her. Her neck hurt from being cramped at such a small space for so long, but she barely paid any attention to that.

Around her, the soldiers of the Earth Kingdom discussed loudly, struggling to raise their voice above the noise of the storm. General Ironwood had left them a few days ago, to head back to Atlas and protect it. He had trusted his men to take the prisoners safely to the capital, and unfortunately for Yang, that choice had yet to backfire on him.

The men seemed to reach an agreement and started to move to the side of the road. Some of them raised tents of stone from the ground to shelter them from the weather, while others put their ostrich-horses under them. The rest went back to the cage to move it away from traffic – though it was unlikely that anyone would be foolish enough to travel under such harsh conditions.

"A storm," Taiyang said. He was right behind her, in a cage connected to her own. "That's just peachy."

Yang kept her lips sealed tight, her eyes bitter and angry, though he couldn't see them, of course.

"Yes, very peachy," Taiyang repeated as they were lowered down again. "We're in luck."

The soldiers retreated to their tents, shivering and cursing the weather. Yang watched with a not so small sense of justice, but that didn't distract her for long.

She had fought hard for the first days, yelling at the soldiers, warning them of what she would do when she broke free from her cage. She launched fire at them from between the bars, but they had put a quick stop to that with threats of their own. By the time Ironwood had left, she had ceased to fight.

Instead, she went completely silent, her head filled with anger that came mostly out of helplessness. Yang couldn't believe she had come so close to capturing the Avatar, only to fail. Who knew how far the distance between them was now. Was there any hope of coming close to her ever again?

But she couldn't stay angry at the Avatar, or even the soldiers. Instead, she was angry at her father. He had failed so badly at helping her, letting the Avatar escape with barely any effort, that there was no doubt in her mind he was doing it on purpose. Why, she couldn't figure out, and she wasn't about to ask him. Previous experiences indicated that he would just avoid giving an actual answer by going on a speech about… whatever he came to his head at the moment.

Sometimes, Yang wondered if her father had ever been an actual General. Maybe everyone had been playing an elaborate joke on her for her entire life. It sounded more believable than the supposed truth.

"This is our opportunity," Taiyang said, his voice only reaching her ears, and not the soldiers'. "I'll blow the entrance of my cage open, then yours. Be ready to run."

"We can't firebend in a freaking storm," Yang noted, forgetting her vow of silence in her anger. "Don't be stupid."

"Shh. If you, a powerful firebender, believe that, what do you think _they_ believe?" he said. "We're gonna have to steal two of their ostrich-horses. Soon as we're out, we bolt to them. If we're lucky, they'll be slow to react."

"Dad, you're insane. Just stay put," Yang clenched her fists. "You've done enough already."

"Sorry, I'm not overly fond of the idea of being held to trial in the Earth Queen's throne room," a thunder boomed overhead. "That's my cue. One, two, three-"

He extended his hand outside his cage. Lightning blinded Yang for a split second. The noise of steel snapping and flying through the air reached her, and the next thing she knew, Taiyang was standing in front of her cage, his hair standing on end. He joined his hands above his head, then brought them down in a flaming swing, breaking the lock with a resounding _crack_.

Yang kicked the door open and jumped out, immediately sprinting towards the ostriches. The soldiers poked their heads out of their tents, beyond surprised to see their prisoners had escaped. They assumed their bending forms, but before any could actually begin to attack, another lightning bolt struck in the middle of them, knocking them down.

"What was that?!" Yang yelled as she jumped on top of an ostrich. "Dad, did you just _redirect lightning_?!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Yang!" Taiyang chuckled. "It was just dumb luck!"

Together, they rode away from the soldiers, setting their ostriches on top speed. They broke into the tree lines at the side of the road, making it difficult for them to be spotted, much less chased.

"East!" Taiyang shouted. "Back to the ship!"

"You go back to the ship," Yang turned her head to look at him, her gaze cold and hardened. "I'm going after the Avatar!"

"Are you mad?! Yang, just let it go! You're gonna end up-"

But she was already out of reach, breaking away from his side and disappearing between the trees. Taiyang slowed down his ride, his expression filled with fear and worry.

"Hurt. Or worse."

* * *

 The trio found a cave not long after leaving town, though by the time they got to it, their clothes were soaked and their teeth were chattering without control. Weiss got Ruby to sit down and lean her back on a wall, and the redhead girl covered herself with her cloak, but the princess knew better than to think it was because of the cold.

"I'm gonna get some firewood outside," Jaune decided.

"Don't," Weiss whipped her head around to look at him. "You'll get sick if you go out there."

"If I don't go out there, all three of us will get sick," he noted, then marched out the cave.

Weiss sighed and faced Ruby. "What a time for him to decide to be useful," she smiled sadly. "I guess he really cares about you."

Ruby pulled her cloak even closer, as if she hoped to disappear within its confines, never to return. Weiss' expression was of pity and compassion, and for once, she didn't feel wrong displaying all of that.

"Ruby, what those people said back at the village… You know it doesn't mean anything, right?" she asked. "Everyone is just… scared, and hurt, I guess, and they want to find someone or something to blame for that. But you're not guilty of anything. You might be the Avatar, but you're still only one person."

"But they're right, Weiss. I can't protect anyone," Ruby muttered. "I couldn't save everyone when we were working with Doctor Oobleck, remember? I couldn't protect the people who were killed by the Grimm fifteen years ago. And I couldn't protect my… my…"

Ruby started to tremble, and Weiss could see tears forming in her eyes. The princess reached forward with one hand to touch her on the shoulder, but before she could, a pile of firewood fell on the ground beside her, making her flinch.

"Sorry," Jaune whispered, rubbing underneath his nose with his hand. "I-I'll get to work on the f-fire…"

He sat down and started to arrange the pile in an orderly manner, all the while sniffing and shivering. Weiss looked back at Ruby and grabbed her hands.

"Ruby, you never talk about… your life, before we met," she said, choosing her words carefully. "I know it must be painful, but maybe it's even more painful to keep it all bottled up. You don't have to do that. We're here for you."

"…A-alright," Ruby gulped. "If you think that will help…"

Jaune grabbed a stick and spun it between his hands. A few seconds later, a spark came to life from the friction, and set the wood on fire. Ruby stared into the flames for a moment, then began to talk.

"I… I was born in the Southern Air Temple. But I guess you guys already knew that. And, well, two days later, the Fire Nation attacked and… you know," she bowed her head. "My Mom hid us both, though, and the soldiers missed us, I guess. She once told me that it was the hardest thing she'd ever had to do… b-but it was worth it, because I got to live."

Weiss frowned. Ruby had mentioned her mother in passing before, and she'd wondered how they had both survived the Air Nomad's slaughter… this explained it.

And the guilt in Ruby's eyes…

"Anyway. Time went on," Ruby resumed. "My Mom knew what had happened at home had to be a part in something bigger. We were the last airbenders, and I was just a baby – it wasn't safe for us to leave. Thinking about it now, she probably already knew I was… different."

Ruby lifted her head, and a bit of light returned to her eyes. "My Mom raised me all by herself, but that was completely okay, because she was the best. Her name was Summer. She taught me everything I know about airbending and the world and the people who live in it."

"…You weren't a very good student back then either, were you?" Weiss surmised, remembering how just a week ago, Ruby hadn't known what a faunus was.

" _Look_. That's neither here nor there," Ruby said, crossing her arms. "My Mom was an ambassador before everything went down, so she travelled a lot. She knew her stuff."

Jaune looked at Weiss, as if expecting her to make a question, but seeing as she wasn't telepathic, he had to go ahead and do it himself. "So, Ruby… what about your father?"

Ruby tilted her head a little, as if the question was just as intriguing to her as it was to him. "I dunno. Mom didn't say much about him, except that she loved him and he was a great guy and all that stuff," she frowned. "I guess if he was an Air Nomad, it must have been too painful to…"

She fell silent. Jaune looked away guiltily. Weiss could only feel sorry for Ruby – she had a pretty good idea of what she was going through, and she knew just how to deal with it.

"That'll remain a mystery, then," Weiss said, moving the conversation along. "I'd like you to continue, Ruby."

"Huh? Yeah, okay," Ruby sighed. "It's time for the bad part, then."

* * *

 The ostrich-horse kept at breakneck speed, but sooner than she would have liked, Yang felt it start to slow down. She didn't force it back to pace, but her impatience was great, especially with the rain pouring down on her. If it wasn't for her enhanced body heat, she would have easily caught a cold by now.

The woods were dark, and she could barely make out a path in front of her, but she was sure she was heading north, as she hadn't deviated from the direction she had first set off at. If she kept at a steady speed, she maybe could go past Atlas, just grazing its walls, and avoid any patrols. It was a very hopeful thought – there was a reason every traveler was forced through the city, and if word of her escape reached Ironwood's ears, her chances would be slim, if not nonexistent.

Still, she went on, never faltering or thinking twice. Her mind was set – she had to catch up to the Avatar and capture her, once and for all. This time, she wouldn't rely on tricks, or make a grand entrance. Just go in, fend off that annoying princess and whatever-his-name-was, and grab her prize.

The thought should be bringing a smile to her face, but she didn't feel any sort of happiness. Capturing the Avatar had sounded like such a glorious achievement before… when had that changed? When had it become such a bitter prospect to her?

"Stupid old man…" Yang muttered under her breath.

No doubt her father would be overjoyed if he knew what she was thinking. For whatever reason, it seemed like he was always cheering for her to fail, or for the Avatar to win. But he would always hide that under that cheery wise attitude of his. What a faker.

He wasn't all that different from his spouse, after all.

She was snapped from her thoughts when something leaped from the shadows in front of her, a huge wolf-life Grimm with malicious red eyes and shining fangs. The ostrich-horse cried in fear, but was too slow to react. Yang was sent rolling on the ground as the monster collided with her ride, pinning it down brutally.

"Crap!" She jumped to her feet and raised her fists. "Get off him!"

She punched the air, sending a fireball in the Grimm's direction, but it was almost immediately stamped out by the storm. Yang cursed and stepped back, her eyes fixed warily on the beast, which stared right back. The ostrich struggled under its claws, crying pitifully.

"I'm sorry!"

Yang turned and ran. She had no chance of defeating such a dangerous creature with her firebending limited by the weather and no weapon at hand.

Her boots splashed against the muddy soil, and her eyes stung from colliding with the rain. She felt helpless, and furious to boot. Of all things that could have happened, losing her only mean of transportation was the worst of them. Now she would never catch up.

Why was the world so hell-bent on foiling her plans every time?

* * *

 "One day, when I was ten, my Mom came to talk to me on the temple courtyard. We used to play there all the time, but that day…" Ruby said. "She had this expression on her face – I still remember it – like she had to tell me something, but really didn't want to."

"That's when she told you you're the Avatar," Weiss said.

"Yep. Like I said, I think she always suspected it. And as I got older, things started happening around me. Like when you're an unexperienced bender, your element will sometimes react to your presence without you doing anything. Except with me it wasn't just air that was doing that," Ruby shrugged. "It must have been really obvious to her at that point."

"That must have been pretty awesome," Jaune said. "I mean, if my mother told me _I_ was the Avatar…"

Weiss scoffed. "That's almost as unrealistic as a girl actually falling for your so-called _charms_."

Ruby pressed her knees against her chest and hugged them, eyes staring into the fire. "It was awesome at first, sure. Bending the four elements? What could be cooler?" she shook her head. "But then you move past that and get to the other stuff. Like how you've got the spirits of hundreds of dead people inside you. Or that your entire existence revolves around killing Grimm and stopping bad people – and that, so far, you've royally fail at doing anything close to that."

"Oh. Yeah, that sounds pretty, uh…" Jaune gulped. "…difficult?"

Weiss looked away in shame. She had to admit she had, on a number of occasions, felt somewhat… envious of Ruby. After all, she was not only a princess, but she had experienced far more than this _clueless_ airbender. But she'd never accounted for the burdens of being the Avatar. With even more shame, Weiss realized that now she was _grateful_ Ruby was the one destiny had chosen.

"So, my Mom told me, and I freaked out," Ruby continued. "I really threw a fit. An Avatar fit – you guys know what I'm talking about. And I ran and hid from her all day, and I was _so angry_ at her, like somehow she was to blame. And then…" her voice lowered to a whisper. "…I got this awful sensation, and when I went to find her. When I did, she was… she was… The Grimm…"

Weiss' eyes widened. "Ruby, you don't have to-"

"S-she told me it wasn't my fault, and that she loved me and I was going to c-change the world, and that, n-no matter what, she would always be with me, and then she was _gone_!"

Ruby sobbed, the noise erupting from her throat and echoing throughout the cavern over the pouring rain.

"She's dead because of me."

She enclosed herself within her cloak, and the campfire shrank suddenly, inviting in the darkness.

"I killed her."

* * *

 Yang's legs were getting sore from the running. Her breathing was erratic, her lungs staying filled for barely a second every time she took in air. Her ears rang, and her head felt like it would explode at any moment.

But she couldn't stop. Somewhere behind her, another _thing_ followed right in her heels. She could hear its growling, and every once in a while, it slowed down to run its claws along a tree with a horrible screeching noise, taking pleasure in the terror it instilled in her.

The forest seemed to have no end. No matter how much she ran, there were always trees, hiding the light from the moon, concealing her surroundings in darkness. Her only hope now was, ironically enough, to run into a patrol of Earth soldiers. They would be ready and trained to dispose of any kind of Grimm, no matter how big and ferocious it was.

And then she tripped on a tree branch and crashed down hard on the ground. Her heart skipped, her blood ran cold, as she waited for the Grimm to sink its fang on her back, to drag her to its lair or eat her right on the spot. Tears stung her eyes, making it even more difficult for her to see anything.

Yet it never came. Slowly, Yang raised her head to look. She couldn't hear it anymore. Was it circling around her, giving her false hope, another cruel game? Had it found an easier prey, or had she somehow lost it?

Whatever the case, she wasn't about to wait for it to come back. Without hesitation, Yang got up and ran, somehow summoning one last reservoir strength than ever.

Too late did she realize she was stepping into nothing. For a few seconds, she looked down at the black nothingness below, before her brain caught up to what was happening. She screamed and covered her head with her arms, hoping futilely to protect it from harm.

And she crashed.

* * *

  _"Mom! Mom! Look what I can do!"_

_Her mother didn't turn to look at her, red eyes focused solely on the map laid on the table in front of her. Her lips formed a straight, emotionless line, as they always did._

_"Mom!" She tugged on her sleeve. "C'mon, look at me!"_

_Finally, her mother lost her patience, turning hastily while pulling her arm away, almost knocking her down in the process. "What is it, Yang?"_

_"Look! Master just taught me this," Yang took a step back, then joined her hands by the tip of their fingers, making the shape of a small ball. Fire ignited between them. Then, she blew on it, and the fire spread above their heads in a shower of red, orange and yellow. "Isn't it beautiful?"_

_Her mother turned back to her map. "I don't have time for this, Yang. Go show it your father."_

_"But… I wanted to show it to_ you _." Yang muttered, but her mother didn't budge. Sadly, she turned and walked away._

_As she neared the entrance of the room, one of her mother's officers passed her. Young, with raven hair and amber eyes. A quiver full of arrows was strapped to her back, and she carried a bow on her hands._

_"Lord Raven-"_

_"You always have time for_ them! _" Yang spun around and shouted, pointing her finger at the stranger. The archer halted, her eyes going from Yang to the Fire Lord. Her lips formed a discreet smile._

 _"_ Don't _speak to me in that tone!" her mother's voice boomed throughout the room. "Leave, or I'll be forced to teach you a lesson. You've been enough of a bother for today."_

_Yang shot a cross look at the officer, then turned and marched away. Only once she was out of eyesight from the older women, did she allow herself to cry. Wiping her eyes with her sleeves, she went about to find her father._

* * *

 "Dad…"

Yang opened her eyes. Her whole body felt numb, but somehow, she had survived the fall. Maybe something was broken, and her head felt oddly light, but she was alive.

Her relief didn't last for long, as a shadow leaped towards her, forming a lupine silhouette against the whiteness of the moon. It fell at an alarming pace, apparently fearless of the height she herself had fallen. Helplessly, Yang raised her arms, if only to slow down the beast for a few seconds.

Just before the Grimm reached her, another shadow appeared from the corner of her vision, streaking through the air towards the monster. The noise of steel cutting through air, then flesh, rang on Yang's ears. The Grimm turned to smoke, then dispersed.

"That was close," a grave male voice said. "Good thing I found you, Firecracker."

The stranger walked towards her, stepping into the moonlight, revealing a man with graying black hair and red eyes. A wicked-looking scythe rested on his right shoulder.

Yang's eyes widened. "Uncle Qrow?"

"In the flesh," he said, offering her a hand. "I had hoped my days of getting you out of trouble were long gone, but it seems like you just can't let me rest. Come on, kiddo. Get up."

Yang took his hand and tried to stand. Her body protested the effort violently, her knees buckling and muscles screaming in agony, and she fell back down.

"Yeah, just like I thought," Qrow sighed. "Just rest for now, kiddo. Let me take care of you."

Hesitantly, Yang lied her head down and closed her eyes, falling into a sleep full of dreams and memories.

* * *

 There was silence in the cave for a long while, as Ruby stared at the dying fire morosely and Weiss and Jaune struggled to find something, _anything_ , to say that could comfort her.

"Ruby," Weiss began. "You can't blame-"

"Yes, _I CAN!_ " Ruby jumped to her feet and thrust her arms down her sides furiously. The fire which had been so faint just a second ago, now rose to almost touch the ceiling, hot embers flying through the air and falling dangerously close to them. "Stop _saying_ that! It is my fault so many people are suffering! People are dead because I was being a stupid, scared little kid when I should have been acting like an Avatar!"

"No, _you_ stop!" Weiss said, her voice striking the redhead like a whip. "Sit down."

Ruby hesitated for a moment, then did as the princess ordered.

"Listen. You are not the Avatar," Weiss said firmly, making Ruby recoil at her words. "You're _Ruby_. You're a person, first and foremost, like anyone else. And if half the world wants to hold that against you?" she slammed a hand against the ground. "Let them! They don't deserve you. But you'll help them anyway, because that's how good of a person, and an Avatar, you are."

Weiss leaned back and set her eyes on the ceiling of the cave, as if she were taken aback by the intensity of her own words. Ruby remained silent, staring in awe at the princess.

Jaune trailed the ground with his finger, not making eye contact with the girls. "My Dad died defending our village from Grimm when I was twelve."

Weiss whipped her head around to look at him, lips parted in surprise. Ruby muffled a gasp with her hands, but just as she started to say she was sorry, Jaune raised a hand and interrupted her.

"For a long time, I blamed myself. If I had been there, fighting by his side, maybe he wouldn't have died," he said. "But I was just a kid. I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't ready. And that's okay," he grinned. "The sacrifice my Dad made that day allowed me to grow into who I am today. And, yeah, I might not be half the man he was… but I'm getting there, bit by bit. But if I would have let the guilt get to me…"

He gestured emptily with his hands. Weiss put a hand on her chest, startled to find there were tears welling up in her eyes. "Jaune, if it's worth anything, I think you aren't so far from him as you belie-"

Jaune sneezed, then fell on his side, groaning pitifully. Weiss lowered her hand, brought back to reality with severe disappointment.

"Guys… I…" Ruby spoke, trembling lightly. Weiss turned to look at her, and Jaune managed to sat up just enough to make eye contact. "I love you two. You're like – you're like my Mom – like family. C-can I hug you?"

"You don't have to _ask_ ," Weiss said, exasperated, but she didn't hesitate to spread her arms. Jaune mumbled something unintelligible and opening himself up for a hug too.

Ruby squealed, and suddenly they were all on the ground, her cloak covering most of them. Jaune settled in, glad for the warmth, and closed his eyes. Weiss couldn't keep her expression neutral any longer, and allowed herself to wrap her arms around Ruby.

"I… haven't gotten a hug like this in years," Weiss whispered. "Thanks, Ruby."

"Hey. I haven't either," Ruby said. "This is great. I want us to always be like this."

"Difficult," Weiss mumbled grudgingly. "We have to get up eventually."

"I meant figuratively. Like, us three have to stay together forever," Ruby clarified. "Right, Jaune?"

He snored soundly in response. Ruby smiled, closed her eyes, and followed his example.

* * *

 Ruby woke up all of a sudden in the middle of the night, and for a while, she simply couldn't figure out why. Then, it hit her: silence, except for her friend's soft breathing. The storm had finally passed.

Carefully, she got to her feet, then stepped away from Weiss and Jaune. Much to her surprise, the two subconsciously adjusted to her absence by hugging each other. At first, she was amused, but the sight began to bother her a lot. Gently, she grabbed Weiss and dragged her away from Jaune, until there was no conceivable way they could touch each other. Somehow, she managed to not wake up the princess.

"Good work, Avatar Ruby," she whispered gleefully to herself. "Now let's take a look at that wonderful world outside…"

She walked out of the cave and looked up. The last rainclouds were drifting away, giving way for the stars to shine. Ruby smiled, trying to identify some of the constellations she had been able to see from the Southern Air Temple, but there were none. She wasn't upset, though – it only meant that she had brand new constellations to discover.

The soft sound of rustling came from somewhere to her right, where the grass had grown tall, obscuring much of what was behind it. She narrowed her eyes and reached for her staff behind her back, only to realize she had left it back at the cave.

Something hit her in the head from the left, and she fell to the ground like jelly. Ruby rolled around and looked up. Two eyes stared down at her, one brown, the other pink, both filled with joyful malice.

A boot came down on her face, and she blacked out.


	12. The Grimm Lady

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Twelve: The Grimm Lady**

* * *

 Yang woke up to faint whispering and the distant crackling of fire. She was lying down on layers of soft fabric in the ground, and as her eyes wandered upwards, she found the ceiling of a huge orange tent.

Under normal circumstances, she would have been freaking out, not knowing where she was and how she had gotten there, but instead she felt so… relaxed. She hadn't even thought about it before, but suddenly she realized she had been on the road for weeks now, without ever getting any actual rest.

She felt renewed, so much so that she couldn't help but smile. With a soft _humph_ , Yang jumped to her feet, then began to stretch her arms above her head. Her clothes had been changed, from her worn Fire Nation uniform to a gray and white one. There was a little emblem engraved in it, though she couldn't quite figure out what it was from her point of view.

Carefully, she walked to the tent's entrance and parted it with her hands. She was immediately greeted by the sight of a trio of men sitting on logs around a bonfire, surrounded by a thick forest. It was night, and the stars and the moon were hiding behind cloudy skies.

One of the men was her uncle Qrow, downing a chug of some alcoholic beverage down his throat. All at once, her mind caught up to the events that had led her to… whatever this place was. And she was all the more confused for it.

"Hey, look who's up!" Qrow lifted his mug welcomingly. "Thought you were never gonna wake up."

"How long was I out?" She sat beside him, frowning worriedly.

He shrugged. "Only two days."

"Two days?!"

"And a half."

The other men laughed, then nodded knowingly to each other and got up. Before they left, Yang caught a glimpse of their attire, realizing it was the same design as her own. This time, she could easily identify the engraving as a circle made of white petals.

"Who are those?" she asked in a low voice.

"Associates of mine. Or should I say… underlings…" Qrow smirked. "Whatever the case, they're friends. You can trust them."

"Alright. If you say so," Yang looked at him, her eyes wavering slightly. "It's been so long. Where have you been, uncle?"

"Ah," he leaned back and laid his mug down on the dirt. "So nobody's told you. I'm not surprised. Taiyang always was a softie, obviously he couldn't stomach doing it. And my sister… Well, she has her pride," Qrow spread his arms and bowed his head. "I'm a deserter and a rebel. Got out of the army a few years ago; now I'm fighting against it, for the good of the people and all that."

Yang stared at him for a long time, trying to discern if he was being serious. He had always been the jokester in the family, after all. But… there was conviction in his eyes as he waited for her reaction, and the uniform he wore… it wasn't Fire Nation, not even close. Maybe she was remembering him wrong – she was just a kid the last time she had seen him.

" _Why_?" she asked, resisting the urge to get up and walk off into the forest.

"Yang. You cannot pretend to not have seen what is going on here. What _our_ nation is doing. Homes burned, children left parentless, Grimm running wild after all the destruction…" Qrow snorted with derision. "All in the name of protection, of _the greater good_. But I know better," he leaned closer to her, staring right into her eyes. "You do too, you just can't admit it. Not yet, anyway."

Yang looked away, not knowing how to feel anymore. She had been dealing with so much for the past months, collecting more and more doubt each day that passed, and all that seemed to be pouring down on her all at once, like a dam broken loose.

How was she supposed to know who was right? Her mother, who had been nothing but distant towards her all her life? Her father, who, for all his kindness and support, still seemed to be hiding so much from her? Or her uncle, who now turned out to be a traitor to the nation?

"Hey, kid. Don't have a breakdown on me, alright?" Qrow punched her lightly in the shoulder. "I ain't gonna tell your mother anything. Hell, if she somehow learns we crossed paths, I'll let word slip that you tried to tear my head off or something. That ought to make her proud."

"Sure," Yang said hesitantly. "Thanks, I guess."

"Anyway," his expression turned serious once more. "You're a crazy little imp, you know that? Running around at night like that, alone, just waiting to come across either a horde of Grimm or an Earth Kingdom Patrol… And the Avatar is still days away."

She turned to look at him, perplexed. Just how many surprises was he hiding in that smug attitude of his?

"Don't look at me like that. Intelligence was always my expertise, you know that. I've had an eye on you ever since you landed a foot in the Earth Kingdom," Qrow said. "So, yeah, I know you're trying to catch the Avatar. What are you planning to do with her if you succeed, anyway?"

"Take her back home so she can stand trial for her crimes," Yang replied readily.

"Ah. Of course. Well, maybe I can help you with that," Qrow got up. "But first, you gotta help _me_ with something."

Yang pursed her lips. "Does it in any way involve fighting the Fire Nation?"

He rolled his eyes, then nodded anyway.

"…Fine," she sighed. "What are we doing?"

"First things first," Qrow looked around the camp, "You're gonna need a disguise."

* * *

 Roman Torchwick hummed happily under his breath as he walked the hallways of his newly-conquered fortress. Two days ago, it had been the base of a small troop of Earth Kingdom soldiers, but these had been disposed of rather handily by his men – ignoring a loss or two.

By all rights, he had done a tremendous service for his nation, and he would rejoice in glory and rewards once the Fire Lord got word of it. But that was not why he was happy. No, no, all of that was just a bonus.

Because hidden in the deepest room of the fortress, immobilized by unbendable steel chains, was the Avatar herself. His investment on that bounty hunter, Neopolitan, had more than paid off, though he suspected he could have done the job on his own. That pest of a redhead had been begging to be kidnapped, wandering around alone like she had been.

Oh, yes. After this, he would have enough money to live a lavish lifetime three times over. But first… he had to gloat.

He arrived at the door of the Avatar's prison and inserted the key. The lock opened with a satisfying _click_. Then, Roman brought up his usual smile and strut inside the room, making sure to hold his hand high with the keys dangling from his fingers.

"Well, well, well, Red," he said loudly, his voice echoing in the mostly empty chamber. "Seems like _someone_ got a little careless."

Ruby's head snapped up, her chains rattling from the sudden movement. She reached forward with her whole body, but was launched back immediately. "You jerk! Let me go!"

"Why don't _you_ let yourself go?" Roman chuckled. "Oh, sorry, I forgot. There's no water around here for you to use… And I doubt your silly air tricks can cut through steel."

"Oh, yeah? Bet on it!" Ruby's eyes narrowed, and she took a deep breath, her cheeks puffing up with air.

Roman watched her amusedly, waiting for her to try and prove him wrong, but he was surprised when she released the air like a miniature tornado. Too slow to react, he was struck and knocked against the wall.

He groaned and stumbled forward, rubbing his head. "So that's how it is, then?" He exhaled angrily. "Fine. You can throw as many tantrums as you want, Red, they won't free you from your chains. And the more you hurt me, the more I'll want to hurt _you_ before taking you to the Fire Lord."

"You wouldn't do that," Ruby muttered. "You're not that much of a jerk."

Roman laughed lightly. "Oh, Red. Still so naïve," he tilted his head, staring at her mockingly. "Remember the first time we fought? I told you then I only wanted to capture you for the prize and privilege that came with it, but now… Now I'm actually enjoying this just for the sake of it. I could have you in chains here for the rest of my life and never grow bored of it."

Ruby stared at him in shock. In response, he just curtsied and backed away, reaching for the doorknob behind him.

"The world's a cruel place, Avatar," he said. "The sooner you learn to deal with that fact, the stronger you'll become. Take the advice from someone with experience."

He tipped his hat, then exited the room. He shut the door and smiled, still hearing the sound of jiggling chains at the other side of it.

* * *

 "Jaune!"

Weiss gritted her teeth in annoyance as she shook her companion by the shoulders. His head rolled right and left uselessly, and he refused to talk back to her. He had been like this for almost two days now. The area around his eyes was grayish, his lips were visibly dry, and the only movement he made was an occasional spasm.

"You're such a… a…" Weiss rubbed her forehead. She couldn't even think straight anymore. "I told you not to go out in the rain. But you refused to listen. You always do."

She looked around the cave, her desperation sinking in even deeper.

Ruby was gone. There wasn't a trace of her anywhere. It was as if she had just _vanished_ , plucked out of existence.

Except Weiss still remembered her. The only thing stopping her from leaving the cave to search for her was Jaune. She couldn't abandon him, weak as he was, even if he wasn't as important as the Avatar. It was her fault he was going through this. She had brought him along on a journey he had no business embarking on.

And, besides…

"You dork…"

She laid down beside him and wrapped her arms around him, pressing her face against his shoulder. The fabric of his shirt was wet, and she thought maybe it was because of the rain or his sickness, but she knew better. The time of lying to herself was way past her, left behind on the shores of a lake beside a lonely road.

"Please don't leave me, Jaune."

* * *

 Yang jumped off her ostrich-horse, her feet touching soft grass. The soil was not quite as wet as it had been before, but it was still easy to tell it had rained heavily before. The smell in the air was also a telltale sign of it. She wondered if another storm would be coming soon.

She turned and patted the ostrich's head. It lowered its body and let out a happy noise at her touch.

"You were always good with animals." Qrow said, a few meters in front of her.

"Yeah," she smiled, looking at him. "Who taught me how to ride, again?"

"Flatterer," he snorted. "Come here. We'll leave the ostriches where they are; they're smart, and trained not to wander far."

Yang gave her ride one last pat, then joined her uncle at his side. They were under the shade of trees, probably hidden from the sight of anyone who didn't bother to stare too hard in their direction. Just below them, after the steep descend of a hill, was a mighty-looking fortress, shining in the night with the light of dozens of torches. Fire Nation guards walked on top of the outer walls, watching carefully for trespassers and enemy forces.

"Since when do we have a fortress so close to Atlas?" Yang asked in surprise.

Qrow crossed his arms and gave her a firm stare. " _We_ don't have anything."

"You know what I mean." She groaned in annoyance.

"Yeah, yeah. To answer your poorly-thought out question," he gestured at the fortress. "General Roman Torchwick recently overwhelmed the Earth Kingdom's forces that were stationed here. This fortress is _very_ important. It's just a little ways northwest of Atlas, in a position that allows anyone inside it to intercept the road that goes into the city. That means that, potentially speaking, Roman could cut off half of the trade routes in the Earth Kingdom, effectively destroying its economy and winning the war for the Fire Nation."

"So…" Yang raised an eyebrow at him. "We're going to kick his butt and retake the fortress?"

"Not yet. Well, I mean, we _are_ going to kick his butt," Qrow smiled. "But we don't have the power to retake the fortress; we're only two people. The main objective is to get inside the fortress and free the prisoners they've taken."

"Alright," Yang nodded. "I suppose of all the traitorous missions you could have forced me on, this one is pretty mild."

"I didn't force you to do anything. You agreed to this," he pointed a finger at her nose. "Besides, this is the kind of thing that builds character. You'll be thanking me in a few years."

Yang rolled her eyes, thinking that couldn't be farther from the truth, but she wasn't in the mood to argue.

Qrow went back to his ostrich and opened its saddlebags. "Here's your disguise."

He tossed a mask at her, and Yang caught it midair. She took a look at it, feeling a little creeped out. It was black and red, with a mane of feathers attached to it, which should extend well below her shoulders. The mask of a Grimm.

"And… here," Qrow tossed something else at her. "You'll need this."

She almost dropped the mask in her haste to catch the other object. Yang looked at it dubiously.

"You still know how to wield a sword, right?" Qrow asked.

"Yeah, you taught me that too," she said doubtfully. "But I don't need this. I usually fight using my fists and my firebending. Or a lance, if it's really necessary."

"Sorry, I don't carry lances everywhere I go. It's a soldier's weapon, not a spy's," he shook his head. "And, yes, you'll need that sword, for the same reason you need the mask. Unless you want to join me fulltime, of course."

"Surely you have firebenders in your… uh, rebel forces? The mask will be enough to hide who I am."

"Your mother would know," Qrow said, with a tone that clearly marked the end of the discussion. "Now, listen. You'll follow my every order. You won't hesitate. You won't argue. And, even if you don't believe they're in the wrong, you are going to treat those men down there like they are your enemies. Got it?"

Yang stared at him in silence. This was her last chance to walk away. She wasn't turning into a rebel, and she definitely wasn't betraying her nation… but, once everything was done, there would be no going back. She couldn't treat this mission as if it meant nothing.

"Well?" Qrow's eyes narrowed. "The ostrich is right there. It's yours now. Your father is on your ship, waiting in the eastern coastline near-"

"I got it," she interrupted. "Lead the way."

* * *

 Once again, Roman found himself humming in happiness. After his brief _conversation_ with the Avatar and checking if his head wasn't injured, he was somehow even happier than before. Perhaps it came from the knowledge that now the girl's head was probably swimming with thoughts of hopelessness and despair. He was just the type of guy who enjoyed the simple things in life.

As he walked atop the outer walls, admiring the fortress of his own conquer, a soft sound drew his attention – someone clearing their throat behind him. He turned around and was faced with Neopolitan. Well, not faced, really, because she easily stood two heads shorter than him.

She opened her hand and shook it near his chin.

"What?" Roman asked confusedly.

She groaned in annoyance and gestured at her belt, more specifically at her coin pouch.

"Ah. I already paid you, didn't I?"

Neo shook her head, then brought her fingers together and moved her hand up and down in a straight line, as if she were cutting something.

"Only half? But I thought…" Roman hit himself on his forehead. "I charged Perry with handling your payment, didn't I?"

Neo rolled her eyes, as if she couldn't believe he would do something so foolish. Roman walked to the edge of the wall and laid his hands on the railings.

" _Perry!_ " he screamed at the top of his lungs. "There are three things I detest in this world! Pesky redheads! You! And when people don't get paid what they're due! If you don't show your face right here, right now, I'm gonna make sure by the end of the night there are only _two_ things I detest in this world!"

He turned to look at Neo, who just nodded repeatedly in admiration.

"Heh," Roman chuckled. "I like you, Neo. You're my kind of bounty hunter gal. Maybe we should consider a permanent arrangement?"

Before Neo could mimic a response, an odd noise above their heads drew her attention. She narrowed her eyes and took a step back, her eyes fixed on the ceiling… Suddenly, she jumped to the side, off the wall, and grabbed the edges of the ceiling. Using her momentum, she vaulted upwards, extending her legs out in a double kick.

A woman screamed, then someone fell past the wall, landing on their back on the ground of the fortress. Roman looked down at them, perplexed, but he was suddenly pulled back.

"Hey," a man said in his ear. "Don't believe we've met. But word of me gets around."

Roman spun, his cane flying towards the caped man's head… but he ducked under it and jumped back, out of reach.

"The Fire Lord's traitor brother," Roman said. "What are you doing here? Trying to steal my fortress? Who's your friend?"

"Good thing you're a general, because you're a sucky interrogator," Qrow smiled. He reached behind his back and retrieved his scythe. "Relax, pal, I'm not here to take your fortress. I've something bigger in mind."

Roman's eyes widened. "Neo! Get to the prisoner's chamber! Don't let anyone in!"

She appeared, looking at him upside down from above the ceiling. She shook a hand at him, then formed a round shape with her fingers.

"You'll get double your previous payment!" Roman screamed.

Neo smiled and dropped down gracefully. Roman turned back to look at Qrow and tossed his cane away. Flames burst to life on his hands.

"You never answered my other question."

"About my friend?" Qrow leaned forward, his eyes sparking menacingly. "She's none of your business."

* * *

 Yang rolled on the floor, pushing the front door of the fortress open with the weight of her body. She jumped to her feet and, in the same motion, drew the sword from her hip and turned around to face the soldiers that chased her.

"Back off!" she shouted throatily, trying to mask her voice. It was unlikely any of the soldiers would recognize it, but she preferred not to take that risk. "I don't want to hurt you!"

One of the soldiers leaped towards her and threw his spear, but she simply ducked under it, then kicked him in the knee while he landed. The man screamed in pain and fell face-first on the ground.

Another came just after, running like his life depended on it. He opened his mouth and jumped, his face contorted heavily, as if he weren't very accustomed to physical exertion. "Perry Strike!"

Yang thought fast and closed the door before he could cross its threshold. The soldier smashed against it and blacked out immediately. "Sorry, Perry!" she screamed, forgetting herself for a moment, then turned and ran.

This hadn't been part of the plan. Well, not the first plan. Or the second or the third. Qrow had said that, if things turned sour quick, she was supposed to go inside the fortress and search for the prisoners while he distracted Torchwick and his men. The problem was, she had no idea where the prisoners were being kept. How was she supposed to find them?!

As she turned a corner, she almost clashed against a running pair of soldiers that must have heard the commotion outside. After a moment of hesitation, she hit one of them in the forehead with the pommel of her sword, then kicked the other one in the stomach, knocking him out too.

"Sorry," she muttered, then pressed her back against a wall. "Okay, Yang. Think. What would Qrow do… What would Dad do…" She closed her eyes. "The prisoners must be either high up, or far down…"

The fortress did not seem that big from the outside, at least vertically. So that meant that Torchwick probably wouldn't have put the prisoners on the highest floors. So that left the lower levels as the only remaining option.

She took off running, her heart beating fast inside her chest. The hallways of the fortress were undistinguishable from one another, but she kept her eyes on the wall to her left, to prevent herself from going in circles.

Soldiers crossed her path every once in a while, but she dealt with them easily, doing her best not to hurt them too much. She considered dropping her sword and using her fists instead, but Qrow had a point. The regular soldier wouldn't know, even Torchwick wouldn't, but her mother knew everything about her. She would figure out her identity if given even the slightest of clues.

Finally, she arrived at a different hallway. It was barely lit, and it had only one exit: a single metal door. Yang sheathed her sword and marched towards it. Either she had found her destination, or someone was about to be woken up very rudely… and probably punched afterwards. Casualties of war.

She turned the doorknob, but the door didn't open. "Yep, probably the prisoners," Yang smiled. "Unless sleepyhead's scared of nighttime intruders… which would be fair."

She took a deep breath and drew her right arm back. Fire enveloped her hand. Then, she punched the door. Upon impact, a small explosion occurred, and the door went flying off its hinges with a deafening screech. Yang winced and shook her hand, thinking there had probably been a better way of getting inside.

"Oh, hey! Uh, you're here to help, right?"

Yang looked up in shock. Chained in the middle of the room was none other than the Avatar. The blonde faltered for a moment, the world spinning around her.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked worriedly. "You did just punch a metal door open…"

Yang opened her mouth, but cut herself short, realizing the Avatar would easily recognize her voice. "…Why are _you_ here?" she fired back in a low tone of voice, hoping it would be enough to hide her identity.

"Monkey-feathers," Ruby huffed. "You're not here to rescue me, are you?"

"No, I'm not," Yang's eyes narrowed, an idea taking form in her head. "But maybe-"

Footsteps sounded behind her, and she spun around to face its owner. A girl with pink and brown hair – Neopolitan. Qrow had told Yang about her. Famous bounty hunter who never spoke a word, but nobody knew if it was because she was mute of she just didn't feel like speaking.

"That's the jerk that captured me!" Ruby yelled.

"Thanks for the information," Yang muttered, then drew her sword. "What do you want, you…" Neo stopped before her, and only then did she notice how short she was. "Uh… You're pretty small."

Neo smiled mischievously. The next thing Yang knew, she was on the floor, her legs hurting from a kick she hadn't even seen coming. Neo looked down at her, still smiling, while slowly raising a blade in her left hand.

"Aaalright!" Yang shouted, backing away. "We got off on the wrong foot! Let's try again! My name is… Uh… I'm the Grimm Lady!"

"Seriously? _Grimm_ Lady:" Ruby asked. "I mean, that's kinda cool, but also kinda insensitive when you think about it."

"It's not my _real_ name-"

Neo dashed at her, swinging her sword. Yang yelped and jumped to her feet. She felt air rush to her face as the blade narrowly missed her nose.

"Last chance," she said. "We can work toge-"

A lone strand of blond hair hovered in front of her eyes.

"Forget that." Yang drew her sword and thrust at Neo, who simply stepped aside, letting the blade pass harmlessly.

Yang stumbled forward, her balance lost. But she was angry now, and she had a pretty clear target. She spun and swung with her sword in the same movement, trying to catch her foe off-guard. Once again, Neo dodged with ease, ducking beneath the attack. Her smile seemed to actually grow.

Yang grunted furiously and tried again with a vertical slash, but Neo glided off of reach with apparently no effort. The firebender pressed on, and on, and on, but Neo always dodged, never striking back. It was as if she was just playing, treating the fight like a silly game – while to Yang, it felt like her whole life hinged on its result.

Attacks started to blur together. Yang's vision turned red. Sweat poured down her forehead, tracing half-circles around her eyes. She had to summon every last drop of willpower in her not to start firebending. It would have been so easy. Just a few seconds without restraint, and Neo would go down, surely.

Just as Yang was about to give up and resort to that, an odd noise broke her off her trance. Chains rattling together… followed by a soft gasp. Yang turned her head lethargically, feeling as if she was immersed in a huge pool of water.

The Avatar's eyes bore into hers. Silver, like the moon. Yang had known their color ever since they met; it was one of the first things she asked about when trying to locate the redhead's whereabouts. But now, it felt like she was seeing them for the first time. There was… something different in them… A mixture of emotions Yang wasn't used to seeing from anyone other than her father and her uncle.

She was being cheered on, against all odds.

Without thinking, Yang threw her sword with all her strength, sending it flying in the Avatar's direction. Ruby yelped in fright, but the blade missed her entirely, instead slicing through the chains that bound her right arm.

Neo made a startled noise and started to run towards the redhead, but Yang tackled her, catching her off-guard. The bounty hunter went rolling on the ground, no technique or grace being enough to surmount the difference of weight between them.

Yang turned to look and was pleased to see Ruby had already picked up the sword and freed her other arm. Unfortunately, she seemed to be having difficulty regarding her legs.

"Let me," Yang took the sword and cut through the chains. "Go, go, go!"

She grabbed the Avatar by the wrist and ran, practically dragging her along.

"Wait! I don't have my staff!" Ruby screamed.

Yang turned a corner and slid to a halt as she almost clashed against a salvo of soldiers, all holding their lances, ready for battle. The blonde closed her eyes, expecting to be skewered like a pig… but a sound akin to a tornado made her look again. The soldiers were all on the floor, dazed or unconscious.

"What was that about your staff?" she asked.

"I can make do without it." Ruby grinned, then grabbed _her_ by the wrist and took off running.

More soldiers tried to stop them on the way, but they fought them off together, Yang with her sword, and Ruby with her bending. Yang tried to remember the way back outside, but it was hopeless, so she let the Avatar lead with her instincts only.

That decision paid off, as they found their exit, Yang kicking the door open. Fresh air touched her face. Ruby jumped in triumph. Nearby, a dazed Perry rolled on the ground.

Their moment of victory was stopped abruptly as a group of soldiers surrounded them. Ten, fifteen, twenty – too many for them to count, much less fight on their own. Lances hovered in front of their faces, the moon reflecting on their shiny metal tips.

"Can you still make do?" Yang asked.

"Nope," Ruby replied immediately.

"Thought so," Yang nodded. "We're fine. Just wait a few seconds… One, two… A bit more…"

A shadow passed over their heads, and suddenly, the soldiers just in front of them fell in a heap on the ground. Qrow stood up slowly, not bothering to step lightly on the men and women beneath him, and apparently not worried about the remaining lances that were now pointed at him.

"That's not polite, you know?" he smiled, then kicked the nearest soldier to him, sending her tumbling back against her companions. "Ladies! Run!"

Yang and Ruby ran past him, heading towards the fortress gates. A massive set of double doors made of wood stood in their path.

"I got it!" Ruby shouted, looking at a nearby well from the corner of her eye. She slowed down and gestured with her arms, and a torrent of water rushed out of it, hitting the doors at high speed. For a moment, they held together, but then the wood broke into splinters, freeing their passage.

Qrow grabbed Ruby by her waist and lifted her. She tensed up, fearing she was being kidnapped again – but then she noticed the soldiers hot in pursuit right behind them. If Qrow hadn't done something, she would have been captured again.

"Where do we go?!" Yang shouted back at them.

"Just run!" Qrow replied. "Run like you've never ran before!"

* * *

 And so they did, for almost half an hour. Eventually, they got to the top of a particularly tall hill, and when they looked down, the soldiers were slinking back the way they had come, their heads lowered in defeat and uniforms glistening with sweat.

Ruby sighed in relief and sat down on the grass. Her feet were sore, and her head was light, but she felt happy. Exhilarated. She had been kept prisoner for just a few days, but it felt like she had been without fresh air for months.

"Thanks so much, guys," she said, laying on her back. "Seriously. I don't know how I'll ever repay you."

She waited for a response, but instead, there was only silence. Intrigued, she raised her head. Qrow was standing with his back turned to her, while the woman – the Grimm Lady, as she called herself – glared at him through the holes in her mask.

"There were no prisoners from the Earth Kingdom, right? You knew _she_ was there. You tricked me into rescuing her… Didn't you?!"

Qrow turned around, a smile gracing his lips. "If that's how you wanna put it," he said. "Trick is such an ugly word, though. It carries a bad message. And I don't see what I did as anything but good for you."

"Good for me?" the Grimm Lady repeated, her fists shaking at her sides. "I can't believe I trusted you – right after you told me you betrayed our family! You said you're some kind of spy, right? So you know exactly what I've been doing for months, and you manipulated me into – into…"

"Into a situation where you were forced to face reality. Not your mother's reality; not the Fire Nation's. Reality as it is, clear and simple," he walked closer to her. "So tell me… Can you honestly look at that girl over there – the girl who just helped you escape capture, dishonor, if not _death_ , without as much as knowing who you are – and say with a straight face that she is guilty of _anything_?"

The Grimm Lady looked down. For almost a minute, there was silence. Then, she removed her mask, letting blond locks fall free around her shoulders.

"You don't get to lecture me."

Yang turned and marched towards Ruby, who was so astonished by the revelation, she did not even react. The princess closed a hand around her arm and lifted her up, then started to drag her away…

And then, the two girls were on the ground again, Ruby sitting in utter confusion, while Yang recovered from a blow to the head.

The blonde turned around and looked up at Qrow, who stood before her with disappointment in his eyes.

"Uncle?" Yang muttered.

"You don't get to _uncle_ me. Not anymore. We're not back home, and you're not a little girl," he leaned down to look her in the eyes. "As long as we're standing on foreign soil, you don't get to cry. You don't get to whine. Because we all have problems we've gotta solve, and we all have _a lot_ of blame to carry around," Qrow smiled again, and this time, there was no humor in it. "So I'm not gonna coddle you while you deal with your mommy issues. Trust me, I have _way_ bigger concerns on my list."

Qrow walked away from her and offered a hand to Ruby. She looked up and hesitantly took it.

"Sorry you had to hear that. My family's a mess," he chuckled, casting a glance between the girls – as if there was another joke they were missing. "Just one more minute, and I'll take you back to your friends."

He turned his head to look over his shoulder, back at Yang, who was sitting in silence, tears brimming in her eyes. "A little advice, kiddo. Start listening to your father. Real closely, you know?" He shook his head. "I'm not the guy's biggest fan, but makes a few good points. It's past time you stopped dismissing them."

Yang got up and, for a few seconds, stood still. Then she walked away, not saying another word.

"That was cheerful," Qrow looked back at Ruby. "I hope you don't think I'm a big meanie. Or a Fire Nation bad guy… I guess the latter would be more worrying!"

"Uh… You saved me, and stopped her from capturing me again," Ruby said. "So I guess I trust you. You're… Qrow, right?"

"That's it, kiddo. Qrow Branwen. Spy, scout, grand strategist, badass with a scythe, and defender of the defenseless!" He curtsied. "You're also at least two of these things, as far as I know."

"Yep," she smiled. "And my name's Ruby. I'm the Avatar!"

"Oh, I know," he ruffled her hair playfully. "I've known for quite some time."

* * *

 The sun rose for the fourth time since Ruby's disappearance, and she still hadn't returned. Jaune's sickness was worsening; Weiss had to get really close to hear him breathing, and what she heard did not comfort her in any way whatsoever.

She couldn't leave his side.

She couldn't afford not to look for Ruby.

It felt like she was being torn in half, and that was taking a toll on her sanity. Every little sound had her jumping to her feet, expecting to see Ruby standing at the mouth of the cavern, but it was never her – maybe a stray animal or a rock that had fallen from the ceiling.

Next time, she thought, there will be a Grimm waiting for her there.

So when she heard footsteps and the grass rustling outside, Weiss did not look up. She just kept her eyes focused on Jaune and her back turned to the entrance of the cavern. If she was going to go out, she preferred to do it quietly.

"Weiss!"

A pair of arms wrapped around her neck, and she felt warm skin rubbing against her own cheek.

"R-Ruby?" She jumped to her feet and turned around, and there was the dolt, with that silly smile and cheerful eyes of hers. "Where were you? I was so worried!"

"I was kidnapped by Torchwick, but I'm fine now!" Ruby replied, somehow managing to sound happy despite the terrible news. "Mister Qrow saved me!"

She pointed to the entrance of the cave, where a caped man stood. He waved at Weiss, then walked closer.

"Your friend looks like hell," he nodded towards Jaune. "Caught a cold or something?"

"I think so? I… don't have much experience with that," Weiss frowned. "He's been out for days…"

"Don't worry. I can tell it's not anything _really_ serious," Qrow assured. "But he's lucky I'm here now. I always carry some spare medicine with me. You never know when you're gonna come across someone who needs it – especially with everything that's going on around these parts…"

He fiddled with his belt for a moment, then retrieved a small pouch and from it removed a pile of green herbs.

"Here. Ruby, make sure he chews and swallows these properly," Qrow said, then set his eyes on Weiss again. "As for you, princess… Get some proper sleep. You look almost as bad as Blondie Boy over there."

Weiss was so glad to hear his suggestion, she did not even fully register that he somehow knew she was a princess. She lied down on the ground and fell asleep immediately.

"Thanks, Qrow," Ruby kneeled beside Jaune and opened his mouth. "I don't know what I would have done without you."

"Give yourself some credit, kid," he said. "You would have figured something out. Now, if you'll excuse me…" He sat down and leaned back against a wall. "Even a master spy needs his beauty sleep. Wake me up if the sky starts falling."

Ruby grinned. Despite all the hardship she had gone through recently, she had never felt safer than now.

* * *

 Neo stretched her arms above her head. She leaned to the left, then to the right, feeling her muscles loosen up. She laid her hand on the pommel of her knife. Finally, she opened the door to Roman's quarters and stepped inside.

"Neo!" The general turned in his chair to face her. "Good thing you showed up. Perry give you any trouble?"

Neo shook her head slowly. Last she heard, Perry was still recovering from the Grimm Lady's attack.

"Good, good. So, about that permanent arrangement I had mentioned before?" Roman smiled. "Well, I already have a very specific job in mind for you. Mind you, I will pay _five times_ your original demand. Interested?"

For a moment, she hesitated, wondering if this was some sort of joke or trick. But five times? Well, that was worth a little risk in her book!

"Alright! Here's your contract!" Roman offered her a piece of paper. "You're gonna find that Grimm Lady… And you're gonna deliver her right back to my door, dead or alive."

Neo stared at the contract in disbelief, then ripped it from his hands. A vicious smile took form on her lips.

Forget the money. This was going to be fun.


	13. Paths

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Thirteen: Paths**

* * *

 Yang's ostrich-horse walked along the road at a leisurely pace. To the right, the ocean extended far beyond her eyes could see. The winds carried a salty smell that wasn't unfamiliar to her - it reminded her of home. All of that… it made her feel relaxed.

More relaxed than she felt she had any right to.

A week had passed since she had parted ways with Qrow. Before their fight, he had told her where her father was. Supposedly, he was waiting with their ship somewhere along the eastern coast. If he was any smart, that would be to the North of Atlas.

But her search so far had amounted to nothing. Yang had passed some villages along the way, and Taiyang was nowhere to be found. No one had heard anything about him or her ship, either. She should be upset… but she wasn't, not entirely.

Truth be told, if she put her all into it, Yang could have found him in a day or two, at most. But she was reluctant to push her ride into a speed that resembled something more than a brisk walk. There was so much going on inside her head, long-hidden doubts and fears bubbling to the surface, and she didn't want to talk about it with her father, or anyone, for that matter.

Because as soon as she opened her mouth and said it, it would be real. No matter how hard she tried, she would not be able to deny it anymore.

She was on the wrong path. She had been, for years. And worst of all… she had no clue which was the right one.

* * *

 Jaune yawned as he sat up. He rubbed his eyes, then looked around his tent. Ruby and Weiss weren't there. Had they gotten up already and forgotten to wake him up?

Refreshed after a long night of sleep, he rose to his feet and walked out of the tent. The first thing he noticed was that it was _way_ past the time he should have been up. The sun was shining brightly above, marking midday or close around that time, and everyone was moving around already.

The second thing he noticed, and which was much more alarming that the first, was that everyone was busy, and _everyone_ meant _a lot_ more people than usual.

Men and women he didn't know walked around the camp, carrying weapons and tools, as if they were preparing for something. Jaune spotted Qrow standing before a map on a table, pointing at it with his fingers while a small group gathered around him. Ruby and Weiss were near the edge of the camp; the first looked frustrated and restless, while the latter just observed the commotion calmly.

"Hey, you two," Jaune said, making his way to them. "What's going on? And who are all these people?"

"Friends of Qrow – or so he called them. There's more to them than he's willing to tell us," Weiss shook her head in disapproval. "It makes trusting him a lot more difficult, don't you think? I was willing to look past him being the Fire Lord's brother, but now we have _this_."

"He's a good guy, Weiss," Ruby assured. Suddenly, her eyes flared up and she lifted her fists above her head. "Except when he's forbidding me from doing my job!"

Jaune looked at her in puzzlement.

"Qrow's mounting an assault on a nearby Fire Nation stronghold," Weiss explained briefly. "Ruby's angry he won't let her accompany him. I have to agree with him, though."

"I'm the Avatar!" Ruby exclaimed in frustration. "You can't stop me from saving the world!"

"Ruby, don't be dramatic. They're not _saving_ _the world_. It's just one fortress," Weiss rolled her eyes at her. "Besides, the last time you got in a mess with the Fire Nation, you were almost taken to their capital. You should hold off on fighting them until you are more prepared."

"That's _so_ not fair," Ruby grumbled. "It's not like I chose to be captured!"

Jaune smiled, amused by Ruby's attitude. He understood why she wanted to fight, of course, and if it were his decision, he would have let her. But Weiss didn't have a choice, and Jaune couldn't argue with a safer approach after all that had happened.

"Okay, Ruby. We'll make a deal," Weiss said. "If you don't rush off with Qrow against his will, I promise to teach you all I can about waterbending in as much time before he's back. Deal?"

"But you're already teaching me! Without any deals!" Ruby complained. She was young, but she wasn't dumb. It was easy to see how Weiss was trying to manipulate her. "…Deal."

Weiss smiled smugly. "Of course. Let's find somewhere proper. A lake would be excellent."

"Sounds like fun," Jaune said. "I'll come along."

Weiss turned to look at him and crossed her arms. "No, you won't," she objected firmly. "You would only be a distraction, and Ruby's already distracted enough with nobody around."

"Oh," he frowned. "Then what should I do?"

"How should I know?" Weiss shrugged. "Ask Qrow if you can go with him. Maybe you'll prove useful."

Without another word, Weiss walked away. Ruby looked at Jaune briefly, mouthed an apology, then followed her.

Jaune watched them go bitterly. He hadn't missed the tone of Weiss' voice when she suggested he go with Qrow. Clearly, she believed the spy would either turn him away, or that he would ruin the mission and _then_ be turned away.

"Alright. If that's how it's going to be…" He puffed up his chest. "I _will_ prove myself useful, thank you very much."

He looked for Qrow and found him standing at the same table, but there was no one else near him anymore. It looked like he was done sharing his plans. Jaune walked to him, his bravado fading and giving way to nervousness. It felt like his heart had risen to his throat, and the back of his neck burned with heat.

Finally, he was standing beside the spy, but when he opened his mouth, no sound came out. Jaune gulped and tried again, to no avail. It was as if he had turned mute all of a sudden.

After almost a full minute, Qrow finally noticed him standing there. He turned to look at him, one eyebrow rising slowly. "You okay there, bud?"

"S-sure!" Jaune squeaked. "Uhm, can I come with you? On your, uh… mission?"

"Sure, kid," Qrow said, not missing a beat. "All help's welcome."

"Oh. C-cool," Jaune nodded hesitantly, deciding it was best not to remind Qrow that Ruby's help was _not_ welcomed. That probably would get him off the mission before it even started.. "So… when are we going?"

Qrow closed his map and retrieved his scythe from his back, then slammed it blade-first on the table. Jaune watched nervously as the Fire Nation deserter examined his weapon, cleaning up any stray dirt and making sure there no fragile points in is structure.

"Mister Qrow?" Jaune called quietly.

"Hmm?" Qrow blinked. "Oh, sorry. We're leaving right now," he raised his scythe and rested it on his shoulder. "So. You got any experience on raiding castles?"

"Yep. Plenty! It's… what I'm famous for!" Jaune tapped his sword at his waist, and it fell off his belt and struck him in the tip of his toes with its blunt side. One eye twitching, his face turned red as he struggled to keep his composure.

Qrow just stared at him for a moment, shrugged, then walked away. Jaune bent forward, gasping for air, and picked up his sword off the ground.

"Oh, boy."

* * *

 Following the road north, Yang came upon another village by the side of the ocean. She slowed down her ostrich-horse and leaned to the side to see past its head. Some of the villages she had passed had been under the Earth Kingdom's protection, but luckily, she hadn't been recognized and forced into a fight. She hoped that streak wouldn't break with this one.

Her worry took a different form as she noticed something was… _off_ , about this village. There were no soldiers in green nearby – or _anyone_ , for that matter. Every door was locked, every window shut. Grimm, perhaps? She dearly hoped not.

"Halt, traveler!"

Yang halted, the voice coming from behind her. She turned her ride to look and found a Fire Nation soldier walking towards her, carrying a lance and a shield. He had a threatening look on his face, but Yang wasn't intimidated. If anything, that only made her bolder.

"You know, it's not nice to startle strangers like that," she said. "Especially when you're carrying weapons. Might pass the wrong message."

"Oh, so you're a smart one, then? I don't like those," the soldier warned. "I suggest you shut your trap and tell me who you are."

"Okay. You're making no sense at all, but sure, I'll tell you since you asked nicely," she smiled. "The name's Yang Xiao-Long. Ever heard of me?"

His mouth hung agape as he stared at her, slowly registering her words. He let go of his lance and bowed hastily. "My apologies, princess!" he yelled. "I didn't realize it was you!"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," Yang sighed. Bowing was so weird. "What's your name?"

"Junior, princess," he looked down in embarrassment. "My name's Junior."

"Well, _Junior_ ," she smiled. "I'll forget all about your rudeness, if you just tell me if you've heard anything about my father. You know the one – Taiyang Xiao Long, once General and Consort. He should be waiting with my ship somewhere along the coast."

"Ah, yes! Yes!" Junior nodded repeatedly. "He's waiting nearby. You will find him if you just keep following the road north. Shouldn't take more than a day to get there."

"Thanks. See ya," she commanded her ostrich to move forward, but after a few seconds, she stopped and turned to look at him again. "One more question. What's going on here?"

He looked at her blankly, as if he didn't understand what she meant. Yang rolled her eyes and pointed to the houses around them.

"Where's everyone?" she asked. "It's the middle of the day and the weather's perfect. Shouldn't there be children playing outside or something?"

"They are all inside their houses, safe and sound. This village is under the protection of the Fire Nation. Has been for years, princess," Junior said matter-of-factly.

"So… protection means spending all day and night stuffed inside their houses," Yang muttered under her breath, then raised her voice again. "And who's responsible for that?"

"Your m- The Fire Lord, princess," he said. "Shouldn't you know about these things?"

His eyes widened as he realized what he'd just said, and to _whom_. Yang would have found his reaction funny, if she weren't more worried about what she'd just stumbled onto.

Was every Fire Nation-protected village in this the Earth Kingdom run this way? During her time on the job, she'd always made sure the people were living as well as ever, if not better. It was the least she could do – it wasn't like she had been _invited_ , after all.

 _This_ … this was not protection. It wasn't for the greater good, either. But even as princess, she couldn't go against the Fire Lord's orders. That, more than anything, made her blood boil.

"Yeah, I'm just tired from the road," Yang mumbled finally, looking around once more. "My head's a bit scrambled."

"How about you take a day off here? I'm sure you could use some rest, princess, what with all the important work you do!" Junior said earnestly. "You can stay at the inn, free of charge!"

Oh, good. An opportunist. Yang just _adored_ those. "No, thanks. I'll pass on that. Besides, I don't think you get to decide what's free of charge around here," she shook her head. "Just keep doing your job, Junior."

She rode away, lips pursed, passing by all the houses in the village. She kept looking from the corners of her eyes, hoping to see something, _anything_ , to ease her mind. But what she saw only made her more uncomfortable.

From the window of a house, a little boy watched her longingly, until his mother appeared and pulled him away. An elderly couple shared a meal in silence, their skins pale from the lack of sunlight. On a nearby roof, a lithe silhouette observed her, dashing out of sight at the first sign of being noticed.

Yang left the boundaries of the village and pulled her ostrich aside, disappearing behind the cover of a tree. She jumped down and rummaged through her saddlebags, her hands trembling with rage.

"I won't stand for this," she muttered. "I won't."

She found her sword and scabbard and tied them to her waist. Then she retrieved the mask Qrow had given to her.

Funny. And she had thought she would never use it again…

"Poor Junior. Tonight, we'll see who actually needs protection."

* * *

 The stronghold was but a couple hours away from the camp. Qrow's company stopped nearby, hidden in the cover of the trees that surrounded the place.

Jaune watched in silence as Qrow directed different groups to their positions. The assault would occur the first hour after sundown, with their warriors pouring in from the west, east, and north, while Qrow himself would lead the attack on the main gate to the south.

Jaune got increasingly worried as he saw more and more people being sent away. No one was being told to stay. In ten minutes, Qrow was done, and the only one that remained with him was Jaune.

"Well, that was exhausting," Qrow said, sitting down against a tree. "Now we wait a few hours."

"A-alright," Jaune sat down too. "When you said I was with you, I thought there would be more people. Not just… me…"

"You and me are more than enough to take the gate," Qrow smiled smugly. "I am a deserter of the Fire Nation army, master spy and warrior. And you're one of the Avatar's few allies. Unless we find my dear sister inside that stronghold, I doubt anything will be able to stop us."

Jaune gulped. He stared at his own feet, not knowing what else to do in the man's presence. Qrow was intimidating, to say the least, and though Jaune had met him only a week ago, he respected him a lot already. He worried anything he had to say would sound foolish.

"Hey, kid," Qrow said suddenly. "Spit it out already. It doesn't take a spy to see how nervous you are."

"I-it's nothing, sir," Jaune stammered. "I'm just… not much of a fighter."

"Why do you say that?"

Jaune stared at him, not sure what he meant. What kind of question was that? He had just been speaking the truth. Cold, hard facts. Jaune wasn't the best fighter there was, not even close, and he knew it.

"Look, kid. You're young. Can't be more than eighteen, right?" Qrow said. "At that age, everything seems impossible, and anyone that has the ability to do _anything_ decently well is amazing and out of your reach," he shrugged. "Truth is, no one's perfect, and no one's a total loser. But if you don't believe in yourself, you're gonna be way closer to the latter. Got it?"

Jaune nodded slowly. "I think so," he said. "But it doesn't change the fact that I might slow you down."

"Oh, I know. If that bothered me, I wouldn't have let you come, much less be my one and only partner in this assault," Qrow pointed out. "Like I said, you're young. You're only gonna grow from here, but you need opportunities to do that. I'm offering you one tonight," his eyes narrowed. "Don't butcher it."

Jaune nodded again. He was less nervous than before, but not by much. He would have Qrow to watch his back, but he would have to repay the favor in kind. And if he screwed up, he knew Qrow would be disappointed.

Maybe he should have stayed back at the camp.

"Here's something else, kid," Qrow said. "It's not enough to be good warrior. You also have to think smart. In fact, it's my personal belief that knowledge is always more important than, say, knowing how to swing a sword," he raised a finger. "So, tell me: why are we attacking this stronghold?"

"Uhm…" Jaune frowned. "Because the Fire Nation took it, and it doesn't belong to them?"

"That's superficial, kid. No one wants something just because it's theirs. There's value to everything," Qrow stated. "So, what is the value in this stronghold?"

"Well… It's north of Atlas. It's near the road, right?" Jaune said. "So… it's important because it can cut off commerce and enemy movement?"

"Yes! But that's not all of it. The road is not really that important; if blocked, people would just take another and only lose a couple of days' time, at most," the spy explained. " _But_ it serves as an excellent place to just hold _a lot_ of soldiers. From there, they can be sent to pretty much everywhere in the north. Think of it like a crossroads."

Jaune smiled, satisfied that he had gotten at least a little bit close to the answer.

Qrow cleared his throat. "That's not what I asked, though," he pointed out. " _Why_ are we attacking it?" He raised a hand to stop Jaune before he could start making wild guesses. "Our ultimate goal here is to take the fortress in the south, the one Ruby was kept in. But they're getting reinforcements constantly from this stronghold, so…"

"So we take this stronghold, and the southern fortress is left vulnerable," Jaune finished. "It's like a waterfall! We make a barrage at the top, and the water stops flowing down to the bottom."

"That's a creative way of putting it, but yeah, that's the gist of it," Qrow chuckled. "See? You just gotta think of the larger picture. You do that, and you'll always be one step ahead of everyone else. Don't need to be the Avatar to make a difference."

Jaune laid back, resting his back against a tree. For the first time in a long, long while, he was feeling quite proud of himself. Yes, he hadn't thought all of that all on his own, but it was a start. He wasn't feeling as nervous as before.

In fact, he was rather looking forward for their mission to truly start.

* * *

 "Okay, let's move on to the next move, shall we?" Weiss spoke firmly, holding her chin high as she stared at the lake before her. "I don't exactly recall its name, but I've taken to calling it an Imprisonment Bubble. Its applications should be obvious, but don't think that means it's easy to perform."

She raised her arms in perfect synchrony, her fingers curved like a claw, and the water rose in response. Next, she spun her hands slowly. The water spun on itself, making round trajectories, until it formed a perfect sphere.

"This is just the beginning, though. Escaping from a prison made of water is not the hardest thing to do, if you're a competent fighter, that is," Weiss noted. "So you'll want to freeze it solid. It takes _a lot_ of concentration. And you'd better make sure to leave a few holes open so your opponent doesn't suffocate," she turned around. "Did you get that?"

Much to her chagrin, she found Ruby staring at her blankly, as if she wasn't even there. Weiss put her hands on her hips.

"Hey!" she yelled. "Weren't you the one all excited to learn more waterbending?!"

"W-what?" Ruby blinked, her cheeks turning red. "I was paying attention! I swear I was!"

"Don't you lie to me, Avatar," Weiss glared at her. "At least have the decency to tell me why you were ignoring me. Am I boring? Are you tired? Go on, explain yourself."

Ruby looked down at her feet, clearly ashamed of her actions. "You're not boring, and I _was_ paying attention to you," she mumbled. "Sorry. Maybe I'm just tired. Can we take a break? We could just… talk?"

Weiss raised an eyebrow at her. Clearly, there was something Ruby wasn't telling her, and Weiss knew it was unlikely she could figure out what it was on her own. She had learned that when Ruby wanted something to stay secret, it _stayed_ secret until she changed her mind.

"Fine," Weiss sat down beside the redhead. "What do you wanna talk about?"

The princess waited silently for a response, taking the opportunity to smoothen her hair with her hands. Weeks had passed since the last time she had had the luxury of taking proper care of it. Weiss wasn't vain – or at least she liked to think she wasn't – but she was proud of her hair, above all else.

More than a minute passed until Weiss finally noticed Ruby still hadn't spoken up. She turned her head to look, a sharp admonishment on the tip of her tongue, only to find the Avatar staring fixedly at her once again.

"Do Air Nomads have a different concept of _just talking_ , Ruby?" Weiss asked, fidgeting uneasily. "Because what you're doing is not that, I assure you."

"Sorry! Sorry!" Ruby exclaimed, diverting her eyes. "I was… uh… thinking! About serious stuff!"

"Really?" The princess gave her a suspicious look. "Tell me about it."

"Alright… Remember when I told you and Jaune about Qrow rescuing me from Torchwick? Well, that wasn't the whole truth," Ruby said. "He had someone helping him, a girl. She wore a mask and called herself the Grimm Lady. Once we were safe, she took her mask off… and it was Yang Xiao-Long."

"What?!" Weiss tensed. "That lunatic that's obsessed with capturing you? Did she hurt you?!"

Ruby shook her head, and for a brief moment, Weiss could swear she was smiling a little. "That one. And, you know, I get why you talk about her like that. Heck, I used to think the same way…" she sighed. "But Qrow and her had an argument. Like, a _serious_ argument. I didn't understand much of it, but basically, he was trying to beat some sense into her head. And she was… I don't know, she looked devastated…"

Weiss frowned. The idea of Yang as anything other than an enemy did not resonate with her. That girl had only one thing inside her head, and it was the need to capture the Avatar. But the way Ruby was speaking, it was hard not to see her from a different point of view.

"Well, things rarely are as black and white as we want them to be. Maybe she has legitimate reasons for doing what she does," Weiss said. "But that doesn't change the fact that she's the enemy. Remember, she _is_ the Fire Lord's daughter."

"I guess…" Ruby fell on her back. "Gah! Why can't everyone just be friends? War is so dumb!"

"I can see what you mean, but wars are always more complex than they appear at first sight," Weiss noted. "Maybe it's good you think so simply, though."

Ruby groaned, but that only made Weiss smile.

"Is that what was distracting you?"

"Uh, sure," Ruby sat up abruptly, rubbing the back of her neck self-consciously. "Yep, that's all! _Nothing else_ …"

"Alright," Weiss rose to her feet and offered her a hand. "Let's get back to work, then."

* * *

 Junior laughed as he walked through the streets of his village. His soldiers grouped around him, also enjoying themselves, a dozen men and women who had been at his side for more than a decade.

They didn't have much to celebrate, but the night wasn't as cold as it frequently was, and they had gotten their hands on a great quantity of beer recently. The merchant hadn't been happy when they demanded he pay his passage through the village with some of his cargo, but he had done so nonetheless. He had figured he had no other option, really – and he was right.

Junior brought his mug to his mouth and chugged two mouthfuls in quick succession. Not the greatest taste ever, but better than what the homeland sends them every two weeks. And it worked to dull the senses quite well.

"So I was thinking…" one of his comrades said. "Once the war is over – once the Fire Lady comes and kicks the Earth Queen's royal butt – I think… I'm gonna build a spa and make a fortune off of it."

"You're a madman," another hiccupped. "But an inventive madman. Sounds profitable. I'm in!"

"Never said I was inviting anyone!"

"Quit being a jerk. And, by the way, don't call her Fire Lady. I heard she hates that. There are stories of people getting burned because of it."

"Pff! Hogwash. She's a woman, right? So… she's the Fire Lady!"

"It's not about that, you dung-brained idiot! It's about power and respect and tradition and… Uh…"

"Hogwash. Hogwash!"

Junior almost spit out his drink as he heard the two discuss. Honestly, who cared? The Fire Lord was just a person – lucky to be born in power and trained to rule – but a person, nonetheless. He was fairly certain he could beat her in a fight. But maybe that was the beer talking…

He was about to make a comment about that, but as he turned his head, something caught his eye. He glared in that direction, and yes, there it was! A door opening, and someone quietly getting out.

"Oy!" Junior yelled, marching towards the house. "Stop right there!"

The person squeaked and dropped their keys. Once Junior was close, he could see it was a little boy, one he recognized from when the kids of the village took to messing around way too much. This one troublemaker was particularly adept at getting on his nerves.

"Trying to sneak out, huh?" Junior crossed his arms. "Bad luck, pipsqueak. You know the rules. Care to say them out loud?"

"I-I'm sorry, sir," the boy stuttered. "I just wanted to go to the beach, you know? It's warm and-"

"No outside activity during nighttime!" Junior interrupted. "Forgot that? Or do you want the Grimm to gobble you up?" He bent down to stare the boy in the eyes. "Or maybe you want to find out what we do with rule breakers?"

Junior tossed his mug away and took his lance from his back, raising it threateningly…

"Yo! Boss! Someone's coming!"

Junior growled and turned around, frustrated about having his fun interrupted. The boy took the opportunity to find his keys and hurry back inside, locking the door in record time.

From the edge of the village, a figure approached. She stepped closer, stopping a few houses' distance from him and his soldiers. She wore red and black clothes, similar to Fire Nation uniform, but they were made of silk, it appeared. Her face was hidden behind a mask of a Nevermore Grimm, dark feathers and all. On her right hand was a wicked-looking blade.

"Who the hell are you?!" Junior exclaimed.

"They call me the Grimm Lady," the woman said in a strange voice. "Arrogance, abuse of power, cruel punishments… I was drawn to you, just like the monsters you supposedly protect these people from," she pointed her sword at him. "But I am willing to give you a chance to walk away before things get messy."

"Okay, we got us a freak, boys," Junior chuckled. "I get it. You're a Grimm wannabe; or some kind of deranged vigilante. Either way, I don't like the way you talk. How about _you_ walk away, huh?"

"Remember," she twirled her sword. "I gave you a chance."

She dashed towards them, and two of Junior's men went to intercept them, brandishing their own weapons. It was to no avail, though, as the Grimm Lady jumped over their heads and landed behind them. She spun, slashing them in their backs. The two fell like rocks, taken out of the fight by a single blow.

"Holy crap," a soldier gasped.

"Still wanna act tough, _Junior_?" the Grimm Lady asked, flicking her blade. Blood splattered near her feet.

"Get her!" Junior yelled.

All the soldiers rushed at her, Junior joining them from the backlines. The Grimm Lady swung with her blade, striking the first three in front, then jumped back and out of reach.

"Seven," she warned. "At this rate, you won't have enough men standing to carry the injured out of the village!"

"Shut up!" Junior passed his comrades and threw his lance. The Grimm Lady sidestepped, but not quickly enough. The edge of the weapon grazed her left arm, opening an ugly gash. " _Charge_!"

The man next to him began to run, but before he could take more than three steps, something wrapped around his ankle, and he fell face-first on the ground. Junior looked back and saw a shadowy figure running behind his group. As he watched, the mystery person hit two of his comrades on the back of their heads, disorienting them enough to make them kneel in pain.

"And that's my ally!" the Grimm Lady bellowed. "The… uh… the Spirit of Vengeance! And it's _hungry_ for your sins!"

"Ah, damnit," Junior shook his head. "I'm not paid enough for this. Retreat! Pick up the others!"

"Yes. Run, _Junior_!" the Grimm Lady sheathed her sword. "Leave this village. And if you ever think of returning… know that I'll _always_ be watching."

She stepped aside and pointed out of the village. With his ears burning and pride shattered, Junior set about the task of picking up his nearest ally and running away as fast as his legs allowed him.

* * *

 "It's time, kid."

Jaune followed close behind Qrow as he walked towards the front gate of the stronghold. Day had turned into night, but anyone patrolling the walls would be able to see them. Suffice it to say, it made him nervous, but he trusted Qrow to know what he was doing.

They stopped in front of the gate. Qrow looked up and put his hands around his mouth. "Hey, hotheads! You have visitors!"

Immediately, a group of soldiers rushed to the edge of the walls to look down at them. The gates opened, and an officer with a golden insignia emblazoned in his uniform walked towards them, accompanied by a handful of his subordinates. "Who the heck are you?"

"Qrow Branwen, freedom fighter and spy extraordinaire. And this fella's name is Jaune," Qrow curtsied. "We're here to take your stronghold!"

For a moment, there was silence. Then the soldiers all started to laugh, going so far as to double over and fall to their knees. Even the officer was involved in the disorder.

Jaune gulped. "Mister Qrow, are you sure that was a good move?" he asked. "I mean, wouldn't it have been smarter to catch them by surprise?"

"We needed them to open the gate," Qrow shrugged. "And who said we aren't catching them by surprise?"

Jaune tilted his head confusedly. Before he could ask what Qrow meant, the sound of steel clashing against steel over and over again echoed through the stronghold. Jaune looked up and noticed Qrow's allies fighting the Fire Nation soldiers in the walls, matching them in number and overwhelming them in skill.

The soldiers near them stopped laughing, and the officer growled angrily. "You made the last mistake of your life!" He signaled to his men. "Get the boy! The traitor's mine."

The officer thrust his hands out, launching a barrage of fire in Qrow's direction, but the spy dodged easily by jumping over it, vaulting through the air towards his foe while taking out his scythe.

Jaune had no time to protest being left behind, as the rest of the soldiers converged on him, five men wielding swords and shields. "Uh… Don't you think that's a little unfair?" he asked nervously. "I'm just one guy. H-how about you take turns?"

"Pile on!" One of the soldiers shouted, letting go of his weapons and leaping towards him. Jaune yelped and ducked, inadvertently blocking the unusual attack with his back. The soldier groaned and fell on the ground, rolling in pain.

Another came at the boy, and unlike his companion, he was savvy enough to actually use his sword, closing in with a horizontal slash. Jaune froze, for an instant not knowing how to react, then raised his own blade up high in a clumsy maneuver. The soldier hadn't expected that, and when their weapons met, his went flying away.

"I'm so lucky." Jaune muttered under his breath.

"He's a genius!" The soldier shouted. "Attack as one!"

The remaining three soldiers, still armed, charged at him, and this time, Jaune knew no stroke of luck would be enough to save him. He braced himself, closed his eyes, and held his sword in front of him…

 _Don't butcher it_.

He opened his eyes. The world seemed so much clearer now. Death was but one mistake away, yet he felt no fear. Not anymore.

The first soldier came at him with a momentous stab. Jaune stepped aside, letting the man pass by him, then struck his back with the pommel of his sword, knocking him to the ground.

The second followed almost immediately with a horizontal slash. Jaune blocked with his sword, feeling his arm vibrate from the impact of the blow, then swung down, piercing the man in the leg, taking him out.

The last one wasn't even allowed to start an attack, as Jaune stepped towards him and kneed him in the stomach as he ran, using all the force he could muster. The soldier collapsed like a crumbling tower.

Jaune blinked, then looked around him, taking in what he had just accomplished. A hand fell on his shoulder, making him jump and turn around, bringing his sword up to attack – but Qrow blocked it easily with his scythe, his lips curved into a slight smile.

"Good job, kid," he said. "But there's more where that came from. You up for it?"

"Yeah," Jaune agreed breathlessly. "Lead the way…"

* * *

 The last of Junior's men disappeared beyond a turn of the road outside the village. Yang let out a gasp of relief. Even though she was tired and her arm was bleeding, she couldn't help but smile behind her mask.

"Good job."

She turned around to face her unknown ally. Now that she was under the light of the moon, Yang could make out what she looked like. Hair as dark as the sky; eyes the color of amber; and a pair of cat ears atop her head.

On her right hand, she held a sword with no hilt, its iron marked by the test of time. It must have been years since the last time the blade had been honed. Around her left hand was wrapped a black ribbon, made of a material that looked like silk – but if it was the thing that she had used to pull that soldier down, it had to be something sturdier.

"Thanks," Yang waved awkwardly. "For the compliment and the help. I could have taken them by myself, though."

"Sure," the girl smirked, obviously not agreeing with that sentiment. "The Grimm Lady. Should I know that name?"

"No, I adopted it just last week," Yang laughed. "Wish I could show you my face, but… Well, you probably wouldn't like what you would see."

The words came out of her mouth unsolicited. When her mind caught up to what she had just said, her eyes widened. It felt like she had been hit with a slap, except she was the one who had delivered it.

Was she so ashamed of herself that she couldn't show her own face to a total strange? Someone who, for all she knew, had no reason to recognize her as the princess of the Fire Nation?

"If that's how you want it, then I won't complain," the girl offered her hand. "But my name's Blake."

Yang hesitated for a moment, then took the hand and shook it. "Nice to meet you, Blake," she looked away. "You mind dealing with the villagers, telling them those jerks are gone and won't be bothering them anymore?"

"I can do that," Blake said. "But I probably won't introduce myself as the Spirt of Vengeance."

Yang nodded in agreement, then turned around. She started back the way to her ostrich-horse, but before she was too far, Blake called her with a shout. Yang looked over her shoulder at her.

"What?" she asked confusedly.

"Your arm's bleeding," Blake pointed out. "Do you need help with that?"

"Hmm," Yang raised the shoulder of her injured arm, then lowered it, testing out how the movement felt. It stung a bit, but the injury definitely wasn't even close to being life-threatening. "I'm fine. Just the price of the job, I guess."

"Alright," Blake said. "Good luck, wherever you're going."

"Same to you," Yang waved her goodbye. "See ya around, Blake!"

Yang turned again and walked away, resting her hands on top of her head. The sky was filled with stars, each one bright and beautiful in their own way. It reminded her of the time she had gazed at them with her father, not so long ago.

She missed that day. It felt like it had happened in another life – the life of a girl who was sure what she was doing was right, who was set on a path and never looked back.

She shook her head, amused by her own thoughts, and quickened her steps. She couldn't wait to go back.

* * *

 It was long past nightfall when Ruby and Weiss decided to go back to the camp, though that decision was made mostly by the former. After so many hours of practicing, learning, watching, and listening about waterbending, Ruby was exhausted.

She was so tired, in fact, that halfway to the camp, Weiss had to support her so she wouldn't lay down and fall asleep. The heiress was more than annoyed about that, while Ruby looked the exact contrary.

"I don't get it…" Ruby sighed. "How can you still be standing after all we did?"

"I'm accustomed to long practice sessions. My father and sister were very strict about how much time I devoted to waterbending every day," Weiss explained briefly. "Didn't your mother teach you airbending in a similar manner?"

"Nah. She let me learn at my own pace. But I like airbending a lot, obviously, so I didn't skip days very often," Ruby said. She was silent for a while, wearing a little smile on her lips. "Weiss, I'm glad I can talk to you about that stuff. Thanks for putting up with me."

Weiss patted her on the head once. She was glad too that Ruby was starting to be more open with her. Truly, she was. But it was starting to make her feel guilty about her not sharing in the same manner.

But did Ruby even notice how rarely she mentioned home? If she talked, would Ruby realize something was wrong? Or would her inexperience with people interfere with that?

More than everything else, though, Weiss asked herself if it was even right to start opening up. Ruby had enough on her plate with saving the world from Grimm and the Fire Nation, she didn't need to also deal with Weiss' problems.

"Weiss?" Ruby called, worry imbuing her voice.

"I'm happy about that too, Ruby," Weiss said, trying to act as if she hadn't just been silent for too long. "You can talk to me. As long as it's not about something silly or unimportant like how long you can ride an airball, or what clouds must taste like. You have Jaune for that."

"Oh, yeah. Jaune!" Ruby's eyes widened. "I wonder how he's doing…"

"He probably stayed in the camp wallowing in his self-pity."

"Weiss! That's mean!" Ruby admonished. She glared at the princess and smiled impishly. "I know what you're doing! You're trying to make me forget you spent three days in that cave worried sick if he was going to die or not!"

"T-that's preposterous!" Weiss gasped. "I only did what any decent human being would do!"

"Sure. But you didn't need to hug him all that time..."

"I n-never hugged him, you dolt!"

The two arrived at camp mid-discussion, only to find Jaune and Qrow there, looking in their direction in puzzlement. There was no one else in sight, so Weiss assumed that whatever mission Qrow had gone on had already been completed.

"Hey!" Ruby parted from Weiss and walked towards Jaune, suspiciously fast for someone who had begged to be helped to walk a few minutes ago. "How are you doing, Jaune? What did you do all day?"

"I helped Qrow take back a stronghold from the evil hands of the Fire Nation," Jaune said smugly. "I took down almost ten guys all by myself."

" _Right_ ," Weiss rolled her eyes. "And Ruby taught me how to airbend."

Jaune pointed at Qrow, directing Weiss to look at him. Qrow just nodded several times and bowed respectfully to the boy.

"…No," Weiss said simply, then promptly marched inside their tent.

Ruby stared in bewilderment, eyes darting from the tent to Jaune to Qrow.

"Reality is too tough a deal for some," Qrow surmised amusedly.

"So you _did_ help with the mission!" Ruby said excitedly to Jaune. "I knew you could do it!"

"Yep! It was awesome! I mean, I have a lot – _a lot_ – to improve on, but I did well," Jaune said. "Qrow even welcomed me into his secret order; the Order of the White-" Qrow cleared his throat in an overly loud manner. "Oh, right. Secret order. You didn't hear anything, Ruby."

Ruby crossed her arms and stared at him, wondering if he really thought that diversion would work on her. Jaune stood awkwardly for a while, then slowly creeped towards the tent and slipped inside.

"Yeah," Qrow shook his head in wonder. "He really has a lot to improve on."

He walked towards Ruby and retrieved a piece of paper from a pouch on his belt. He unrolled it and handed it to her.

"One of my birds arrived carrying this a few minutes ago," he said. "Seems like a Water Tribe ship arrived at Haven, at the northern peak of the Kingdom. Sounds to me like your princess' ride home."

"Oh, that's great! Captain Port said they would wait for us there," Ruby nodded. "Thanks for the tip, Qrow!"

"Hey, kid. I'm just doing my job," he winked at her. "In this case, my job entails helping a certain Avatar make her way to the most unbearably cold place in Remnant. Seriously, buy some warm clothes before going there."

He tossed her a bag of coins casually, which she grabbed in midair. Ruby gawked at him, but he acted like nothing had happened.

"I'm afraid we must part ways here. There's nothing waiting for me up north and, as much as I'd like to, I can't afford to protect you forever," Qrow said. "We have an agent here and there, though. Jaune will recognize them… _hopefully_ ," he saluted her. "Take care, kid."

"Wait! I have a question for you! Just a little one, before you go?" Ruby perked up. "Uhm… You seem to care a lot about me. And you use a scythe… And you said before that you've known about me for a long time… So are you my…?"

"Huh?" Qrow eyed like she was a crazy person. "Ah! Nah, kid. I'm not related to you in any way." He looked up, tilting his head slightly. " _Well_ …"

He was deep in thought for a moment, but soon waved dismissively and walked away. Ruby watched him go, thinking that every time they had a conversation, she always ended up more confused than before.

When he was gone, Ruby shrugged and entered the tent, eager to share the good news with her friends.

* * *

 Taiyang sat down at the end of his daughter's bed, rubbing his eyes tiredly with one hand, while in the other one, he held that accursed paper he had found a few nights ago, hidden in one of Yang's drawers.

Ruby's strengths. Weaknesses. Approximate height and weight. How fast she usually moved in battle. Every technique she had shown in their fights. The only thing missing was her favorite color.

He tried to tell himself it meant nothing. Yang was just determined to please her mother by capturing the Avatar. But this… this was too much. It was a seriously unhealthy obsession that was bound to get someone hurt _or worse_.

Taiyang had tried very hard. He had looked the other way when every fiber of his being had begged him to act. He had even helped Yang sometimes, encouraging her or giving her direction, hoping she would eventually change all on her own. But things couldn't go on that way anymore.

Something had to be done… as soon as she got back. As soon as he knew she was safe and he could hold her in his arms again. And if that didn't happen…

"No." He shook his head and stood up, dropping the paper on the bed behind him.

Just as he turned to exit the room, the door opened and Yang walked in, looking battered and ready to collapse. He didn't recognize her clothes or the sword she carried on her hip, but his eyes fixed on the wound on her left arm.

"Yang!" He rushed to her, taking her in his arms. "You're… you're here. I was so worried. Where were you? I searched for you, but you were gone…" He took a step back. "You're hurt."

"It's nothing. Really," she said. "I took care of it like you taught me."

There was a long moment where they just stared at each other. Taiyang was overjoyed about having his daughter back, finally. He only wished she didn't look so solemn.

"Dad… I'm really sorry…" She looked up at him, tears brimming in her eyelids. "I didn't mean to make you worry. And I'm sorry I dragged you halfway around the world for… for… I didn't _listen_ to you…"

"Hey," he laid a hand on her shoulder. "You were just listening to your heart. I'm not upset."

The paper was still there, drawing his attention from the corner of his vision. He tried to pretend it didn't exist, but he couldn't fool Yang. Eventually, her eyes fell on it, and she walked past him to take the paper.

"You read this?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude…" Taiyang took a deep breath, assuming a sterner expression. "Yang, we need to talk about-"

A flame ignited on Yang's hand. It burned for a few seconds, then went out. Yang turned her hand, and the ashes fell in a pile on the floor.

"This was wrong," she said. "I don't want to capture her anymore."

Taiyang smiled, relief spreading through his body. He hadn't felt this good since the day a beacon of light had reached the skies near the southern seas and they had found out there was a new Avatar in play.

"Where do you think she'll go next?" Yang asked.

He frowned. "I thought you said you didn't want to capture her?"

"Yeah. I just wanna talk to her. Find out what she's all about." she said. "You know, I thought she was just the Avatar. The one who abandoned the world to the whims of the Grimm. But that's not all. Just like I'm not just the daughter of the Fire Lord," Yang nodded absently-minded. "Maybe she is guilty. But who isn't these days?"

Taiyang felt his heart swell with pride at her words. Had it really only been a week? It felt like his daughter had returned a whole different person.

"Well, we always knew she's headed to the North Pole," he said. "Sooner or later, she'll have to take a ship to get there. Perhaps if we scour the coast, we might find something out."

"Worst case scenario, she slips by and we wait a couple years for her to get back," Yang grinned. "More fun time away from home for us, huh?"

"For some reason, I'm thinking your mother wouldn't appreciate that." Taiyang laughed heartily.

"Hey, it's not like she can drag us back. It would be a scandal," Yang smiled shakily. She sat on her bed and leaned back. "I really need to get some quality sleep. I promise to tell you everything tomorrow, alright?"

"Sure," he nodded. "Sleep for as long as you like."

He walked backwards out of the room, never taking his eyes off her. She was back. It was too good to be true. But eventually, he was forced to close the door.

Things had changed for the better, but there was still a lot of bad coming in the future. He couldn't pretend everything would go perfectly from now on. But he could finally rest knowing they were on a good path.


	14. The Flower Festival

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Fourteen: The Flower Festival**

* * *

 "Ah, the smell of the sea," Ruby took in a deep breath, then sighed happily. "How I've missed you…"

"You never showed such enthusiasm when we were on my ship," Weiss pointed out, her eyes burning holes on the back of the redhead's neck.

"I d-didn't?" Ruby stammered. "Uh, I loved that ship! Yep! Best method of transportation! Very, _very_ efficient!"

Weiss rolled her eyes, but decided to let the matter go. It wasn't important. Besides, she couldn't deny she too was enjoying being so close to shore again.

After parting ways with Qrow, they had resumed their journey, taking a turn for the northeast of the Earth Kingdom. It would be much easier to find Haven if they traced the coastline, instead of bumbling through the countryside like a trio of lost circus monkey-bats.

That line of action brought some risks, though. By staying close to the sea, they risked being spotted by Fire Nation ships. For all they knew, General Torchwick might have abandoned his fortress and gone chasing after them. Yang Xiao-Long was probably on their trail too. Because of that, they agreed on some precautions, like not making too much noise or separating for longer than was necessary.

Of course, Weiss had devised all the precautions. Ruby and Jaune just accepted them, neither very eager to bring forth her wrath.

"Ruby, could you stop jumping for at least _one minute_?" Weiss groaned. "I swear, an old man with decaying vision would be able to spot you moving like that."

"Sorry." Ruby immediately planted her feet on the ground and set her eyes on her feet. She proceeded to walk forward rigidly, occasionally stealing nervous glances at the princess.

Weiss' eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Jaune," she whispered. "Come over here."

Jaune had been lagging behind a little, appreciating the view of the vast ocean to their right. As soon as he heard Weiss calling, he rushed forward, almost knocking her down in the process. Weiss glared at him, and for a second he believed the moment of his demise had finally come.

"Jaune," her voice got even lower. "Do you think Ruby is acting… weirdly?"

Jaune looked at her blankly, then set his eyes on Ruby. The almighty Avatar had abandoned her awkward march, and was now more preoccupied with trying to balance the weight of her staff on her pinky fingers. "Well. She is Ruby."

"No! I mean," Weiss sighed in frustration. " _Weirder_ than usual. She gets quieter when I talk to her, like she's actually listening. She's putting extra work on her waterbending. And she hasn't complained even _once_ about the food rationing!"

"The rationing does suck," Jaune muttered, only to receive another deadly glare. "I don't know. I haven't noticed anything out of the usual. Maybe you're just paranoid after she got captured and all that."

"Hmm. Perhaps you're right, for once," Weiss crossed her arms. "Probably not, though."

Jaune was about to thank her for that spirit-lifting vote of confidence, when Ruby let out a shrill scream and jumped high up the air. Weiss and Jaune gasped and ran to catch up with her.

"What?!" Weiss yelled. "Is it firebenders? Grimm?"

"It's a village!" Ruby screamed happily, landing back on her feet. "It's been so long since I've seen a village! Can we stop there?"

Weiss stepped past the redhead, searching for the village she was talking about. After a few seconds, she saw it, a moderately-sized gathering of houses, with towers and walls built around it. It wasn't too far down the road, and was relatively close to the shoreline.

"That's not Haven, right?" Jaune questioned curiously.

"No, that's much farther north," Weiss frowned. "I don't remember this village from the map Qrow gave us. Then again, there are a lot of nameless villages along the road to Haven."

"It's more of a town, isn't it?" Jaune noted. "It has walls and everything. Maybe the Fire Nation took it?"

"No, I would think they would show it if that were the case," Weiss said. "Regardless, it's best we don't take unnecessary risks."

Ruby crossed her arms and stared fixedly at Weiss. The princess ignored her and began to walk again, only to notice a few seconds later that Ruby hadn't moved from her position.

"I see what you're doing," Weiss said coldly. "Don't think you can change my mind by making a pouty face."

Ruby stomped the ground with one foot, then pursed her lips.

" _No_ ," Weiss stated, but her gaze softened a little.

Sensing her weakness, Ruby crept closer, her hands joining in front of her in a begging gesture.

Weiss closed her eyes and turned away grudgingly. "Fine! You win."

Ruby yelled with glee and jumped on top of her, almost dragging her down to the ground. "Bestest princess ever!"

Weiss just sighed and went on ahead, trying her best to balance the girl on top of her, while at the same attempting to appear unaffected by her cheeriness.

* * *

 The first thing that Ruby took notice of when they arrived at the town was how many people were there. She had visited many such settlings already, including some bigger towns like Patch and the sprawling city of Atlas, but somehow, this quaint little place forgotten in the coastline seemed to be home to as many people as those other ones.

As they ventured deeper into the town, Ruby began to understand why she was having that impression. It's not that it had a large population, it was that everyone seemed to be out and about. She had yet to spot a single closed door or window. It made her giddy, seeing people enjoying their lives outside their homes. This was the world she wanted to protect.

"That's interesting," Weiss said. Apparently, she had come to the same conclusion as her. "It seems like they're holding some kind of celebration."

"Huh?" Ruby looked back at her. "Why do you say that?"

"Take a lengthier look," Weiss suggested. "Everyone's split into pairs, or more. They're exchanging gifts. And the houses are all decorated with bright colors…"

Ruby took her advice, this time paying better attention to her surroundings, instead of passing her eyes over everything in her excitement.

Six or so children were seated on the ground, forming a circle, laughing about one thing or another. They were all holding different objects which had no practical uses – a leaf of unusual coloring, a shiny rock, a hat made of paper… The kind of thing that only served as a sentimental gift.

In a nearby bench, a man and a woman sat side by side, his arm wrapped around her shoulders endearingly. She held a flower close to her nose, taking in its sweet fragrance. A warm smile graced both their faces.

"Oh, wow," Jaune said, slowing to a halt. "Look up."

A strange blue cloud floated in the sky just above the village. Over time, the cloud started to part and take different shades – green, red, yellow, mixing together to form a beautiful sight.

"Well, that's odd," Weiss said, not sounding very impressed.

"You mean _awesome_?!" Ruby exclaimed.

"No, I really meant odd," Weiss shook her head. "Are we meant to take that as art? But what is it even trying to say?"

Ruby shifted her weight between her feet and looked away, conflicted. She didn't care what Weiss thought of it, whatever was going on up in the sky, she found it mesmerizing. But the last thing she wanted to do was argue with her about something so inconsequential.

"Hello, strangers!" a voice boomed behind them. The trio turned around and saw a woman dressed in red from top to bottom – shoes, dress, hat, make-up… everything was red, and she had a smile so big even Ruby found it disturbing.

"Flower Festival?" Weiss repeated dubiously.

"Ah, you haven't heard!" the woman yelled joyfully. Weiss flinched and took a step back, fearing permanent damage to her ears. "Then let me, the Red Duchess, explain!"

Ruby cooed in approval of the title, but she had no opportunity to say anything about it, as the Red Duchess was more than prepared to share her story.

"Legends tell of times long past, when our town was plagued by Grimm day and night. You see, it wasn't so big as it is today, but we were a lot of people, especially for that age, and so the Grimm loved to haunt us!" she declared. "And once every month, when the moon was at its peak, their leader came forth to demand a sacrifice-"

"There is no such thing as a Grimm leader," Weiss interrupted. "And they certainly don't demand sacrifices."

"As I was saying!" The Red Duchess gave her such a stare that, for a moment, they all feared she had turned into some kind of demon. An instant later, she was back to her previous bubbly self. "That was a terrible, terrible burden upon our people, who were forced to give up their own so the rest could survive. Old, young, man, woman, it did not matter! Oh, how tragic…"

An awkward moment followed as the Red Duchess pretended to weep on her sleeves. Ruby and Jaune waited patiently, while Weiss looked about ready to walk away.

"The burden was so, so terrible, that one day, they all said – _ENOUGH!_ " the Red Duchess bellowed so loudly, Jaune jumped in fright and somehow landed on Ruby's arms. The two shared a glance before she dropped him back on his feet, him dusting his outfit as if nothing had happened. "The people of the town refused to give up another of their own. When the Grimm leader came, he said-"

Weiss raised a hand. "Grimm don't have genders."

"Ahem! And he said-"

"And they certainly don't speak either."

" _Ahem!_ And he said… _you have until tomorrow to change your mind, or else I'll gobble you all up_! But the people of the town held steadfast in their resolve. Over the next day, everyone exchanged gifts, declared loves they had long held secret, and awaited their awful fate together… But even so, they did not weep, for they knew they had each other, until the very end," the Red Duchess smiled. "When the Grimm came back, he screamed and howled and rolled in agony and pain, for their love was too strong for him to even get close to! And from then on, once every year, we have the Flower Festival, to celebrate our love and repel all evil!"

Ruby and Jaune looked at each other and smiled, both thinking that had actually had been a pretty good story, dramatic performances aside.

"You could have just said that from the beginning," Weiss pointed out, mortified. "The… legend… is not that relevant."

"Miss!" the Red Duchess glared at her. "With that attitude, you won't be receiving any flowers today."

"Oh, yeah," Weiss smirked. "You never explained why it's called the _Flower_ Festival."

The Red Duchess stood frozen for a few seconds, sweat dripping down her forehead. Suddenly, she sprung back to life and ran away at a speed that might even rival Ruby's.

"Well, that was… interesting…" Weiss put her hands on her hips. "A celebration to ward off the Grimm. It's actually a very clever solution, no doubt better than employing untrained civilians to fight them off."

"And it's super sweet!" Ruby yelled. "Everyone's filled with love!"

"Yeah… That's just _great_ ," the princess looked at her critically.

Ruby pouted, her excitement fading away under Weiss' harshness.

"But…" Weiss smiled a little. "I _suppose_ it's nice. Everyone seems to be having fun. I'm the only one bringing bad energy to this celebration."

Ruby perked up, her heart beating fast in her chest. "Y-yeah! It's s-super awesome!"

"Yeah!" Jaune crossed his arms, in a way Ruby could only assume was meant to appear gallant or something. "Now, ladies, if you will excuse me. I have love to celebrate in this town… to ward off the Grimm!"

He marched away determinedly, occasionally gesturing charmingly to any girls that passed by him. Weiss watched him go with a mixture of amusement and pity, the latter because she knew what fate the day had in store for him. Not the one he wished, to put it mildly.

"Well, then," Weiss turned to look at Ruby. "Seems like it's just the two of us, again. What do you want to do?"

"I- uh, ah…" Ruby stammered, her cheeks coloring fast. "W-well, it's the F-flower Festival, so…" The next words got stuck inside her throat, which only made her more nervous as Weiss watched her in utter confusion. "Let's… look at some flowers…?"

"…Alright." Weiss shrugged, then walked away.

Ruby sighed in relief, then slapped herself in the cheek. "Get yourself together, Avatar!" She took a deep breath. "It's just a silly festival. That's all."

Just as she said that, a heart-shaped balloon floated near her, hovering in front of her for a moment, before leaving with a gush of wind.

"I-it doesn't have to m-mean anything!" she said, then followed after Weiss in a hurry.

* * *

 As Weiss suspected, the Flower Festival turned out to be much more than a pure-hearted celebration of love and happiness and good feelings. She felt a twisted sense of pride in herself as she saw several merchant tents offering the most diverse thematic products, all offered at a very… _competitive_ , price.

She had known it from the start. There was no way a festival like this would still be going on until this day and age if it didn't bring something extra to the town. The extra in this case was, of course, ludicrous amounts of money. And no one seemed to be the wiser to that – or maybe they just didn't care.

Should she care? With Ruby by her side, Weiss was beginning to feel guilty about how she was treating the event. It was a nice festival; it celebrated all the right things in life. So what if some people were getting a little richer off of it? It wasn't like they were ruining the fun for everyone else. On the contrary, they brought even more life to it.

"Ah, there we are," she broke from her thoughts as she finally spotted a flower merchant. "Turns out the Festival lives up to its name."

She walked to the tent, Ruby following in silence. It was a little weird how quiet Ruby was being, but Weiss chalked it up to her being too excited about the festival to even talk.

"Ladies!" The merchant opened his arms ceremoniously, giving them a big, welcoming smile. "Enjoying the festival?"

"It's nice," Weiss said politely. "As are your wares, it seems. May we have a closer look?"

"You must! Looking is free!"

Weiss examined the flowers in display. Growing up in the North and South Poles, she had little to no experience with the subject, but she recognized some species from the books she had read. Roses, violets, daisies, lilies… They had their charm, she had to admit.

"Searching for something special, for _someone_ special?" the merchant inquired, putting some painfully insincere charm into his voice.

"Hah," Weiss smirked. "I'm afraid that's not the case. I'm just looking."

"That's a pity," he winked at them. "When it's young love, I charge only half the price! Are you sure? What about you, redhead? You look the romantic type!"

Ruby fidgeted awkwardly and raised her hand timidly. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Weiss laughed lightly at her companion's nervousness.

"I think we're in the same boat," Weiss said helpfully. "Anyway, I'm not really a fan of gifting flowers as a means of expressing love. It's a tired practice… but that's just my opinion, of course."

"Y-yeah!" Ruby exclaimed, all of a sudden finding her voice. "Who buys flowers anymore, right? Right?!"

The merchant stared at her emotionlessly. Slowly, he extended his hands and brought his flowers closer to himself, as if they were children that needed comforting. Weiss mouthed an apology and walked away, guiding Ruby along with her.

* * *

 So far, Jaune was not having a productive festival. He had been walking for more than an hour, yet he still hadn't found a girl who wasn't accompanied by another boy or a salvo of girls. The former type was out of limits for obvious reason, while the latter, he didn't mess around with because of past experiences. _Painful_ past experiences.

Still, it wasn't as if he wasn't enjoying himself. The Festival was great. It had a lot of fun activities and sights to see. Games of luck and skill; artists, musicians, actors… Only a very bitter person would not find something entertaining to occupy their time.

Sometime during the festivities, Jaune laid eyes on something perfect: a strength tester – a tower several meters tall, with a bell at its very top. There was a line of people waiting to play on it, all eager to see how high they could score. The hammer seemed very heavy, but Jaune wasn't discouraged.

A couple weeks ago, he would have dismissed the game in a heartbeat, thinking he would probably show the strength of a little girl and become the laughingstock of everyone nearby. But after his mission with Qrow, he was feeling much more confident… So confident, in fact, that he cut the line and grabbed the hammer before anyone else could.

"Hey!" the man behind him shouted. "Get on the line, pal!"

"Yeah!" another one joined him. "Wait your turn!"

"Guys, please," Jaune raised a hand smugly. "Let me show you how it's done. I promise you won't be disappointed."

The two men shared a glance, then in the spirit of the festival, shrugged and let him do as he wished. Nearby, a grouped of girls stopped to watch. Jaune winked at them, and they all blushed profusely and giggled in response.

"Alright…" Jaune raised the hammer. "Here… goes! Don't be jealous!"

He slammed the hammer down on the machine's lever with all his force. His whole body trembled with the aftershock. The puck rose to eye level… and promptly fell back down.

He stared at the machine, cold sweat running down the back of his neck. Behind him, he heard the two men in line slap their foreheads in disappointment. The girls made disgusted faces and walked away swiftly, whispering amongst themselves.

"There you go, folks," Jaune said awkwardly. "Have a nice festival!"

He marched away at full speed, remembering why he used to have such low self-esteem.

* * *

 "Ah. This explains what we saw before." Weiss said, stopping before a peculiar tent. Inside it, a woman was trying to draw in costumers to use some kind of machine.

Ruby came to a halt and followed her friend's line of sight. The machine had a rectangular shape, and seemed to be made of some very heavy metal. Curiously, the top side of the machine had several little holes in it, as if something was meant to pass through it.

"Huh?" Ruby stopped to look too. "What's that?"

"I believe it's… a smoke machine of some sort?" Weiss frowned. "I don't know why anyone would want to use it, though."

"Oh! That rainbow cloud before was actually smoke, then," Ruby noted. "That's neat."

Weiss walked towards the tent, Ruby following closely. The woman in charge of the machine smiled widely at them.

"Hello, miss," Weiss greeted. "Tell me, is this a smoke machine?"

"You're correct," the woman nodded. "My cousin used it in his band's concerts, but he retired as a musician recently and gave it to me. He obviously though it was useless and just wanted to be rid of it. Luckily, I am very ingenious and have found another use for it!"

"And what's that?" Ruby asked.

"Were you looking at the sky before? Well, that's what it is. Pretty colors to cheer people up…" the woman sighed. "Well, it was supposed to be more personal, actually. I wanted people to deliver messages using the smoke, but I couldn't get that to work."

Ruby frowned at the saddened tone in her voice. She threw Weiss a cautious look, then raised her hand. "You know, I could help you with that," she said. "I'm an airbender! I can fly up there and write the messages by manipulating the smoke. It wouldn't be too fancy, but I could try."

As proof, she retrieved her staff and spun it in her hands, throwing a mild rush of air at the woman, whose eyes widened, first in surprise, then joy. "Yes! Yes, I would love that! But… If you do that… I don't know how I'll repay you."

"Nevermind that! It's the Flower Festival!" Ruby shrugged. "Come on, let's test it out! Do your thing, and I'll fly up there!"

Ruby walked away from the tent, using the opportunity to gauge how Weiss felt about the arrangement. The princess didn't seem too upset, but Ruby knew how much she worried about revealing their identities. Well, at least she hadn't said she was the Avatar, this time! Although, any knowledgeable person would figure that out…

The redhead then took off in a run, being careful to not crash into anyone as she built up speed. Once she felt she was going quickly enough, she jumped and swung her staff vertically, summoning an updraft that sent her soaring skyward. She rose higher and higher, until finally she stabilized just below the clouds.

Now came the hard part. No airbender had ever mastered the art of flight. That was something that only happened in legends and fairytales, her mother had told her. But what Ruby was able to do was hover for a brief period of time by manipulating the air around her, particularly below her feet. It was a lot like swimming, except with a lot more limitations and _much_ more prone to accidents.

Ruby did just that, and when she was sure she wouldn't fall, she looked down. The sight was fascinating, and kind of funny, actually. Everyone in the town looked like ants now. She couldn't even tell where Weiss was anymore.

A couple minutes after, colored smoke started to make its way upward. Ruby moved aside, not particularly fond of the idea of inhaling the strange gas _– it could be toxic!_ , she heard Weiss say inside her head. Once the smoke was properly dispersed, she turned slowly in the air so she could look upwards, laying a hand ponderously on her chin.

"What to do, what to do…" she muttered. "Ooh! Got it!"

She swung with her staff numerous times, imagining it was a gigantic brush. The smoke parted at her command, creating white lines in the multicolored spectrum. It took her a while, but once she was finished, there was a drawing in the sky – with very squiggly lines and weird proportions, sure, but it was cute nonetheless!

Ruby nodded and propelled herself downward, floating back to the town carefully. She straightened her eyes, searching for Weiss, and once she found her, landed right in front of her. There were many gasps from the crowd around them, but luckily, no one started to yell about airbenders or the Avatar.

" _Ta-ta_!" she exclaimed proudly. "What do you think?"

"Hmm…" Weiss inspected the sky as if it was a piece of art. "What is that supposed to be?"

"What?!" Ruby shrieked. "Come on, can't you see it? I was so careful with the details!" She waited a moment, but Weiss still looked clueless. "It's us!"

"Us? Oh, that's your scythe? And that banana is my… ponytail…?" Weiss raised an eyebrow dubiously. "Alright. But where's Jaune?"

"Jaune… Uh… I didn't…" Ruby bit her lip. Half of her wanted to smack Weiss in the head with her staff; the other half wanted to scream in frustration. She did neither of these things, though. Instead, she mustered a cheerful expression to hide her true feelings behind. "I forgot to draw him. Oops!"

"Really?" Weiss smiled slightly. "A little odd for you, but I guess that's just his usual luck. Are you going to check with the lady from the tent now?"

"…Sure," Ruby shrugged. "See ya later, Weiss."

Ruby turned and marched towards the smoke machine's tent, all the while grumbling under her breath about how dense some princesses could be.

* * *

 Jaune's enjoyment of the Flower Festival became much more tiring than it should have been after his unfortunate incident with the strength tester, as he attempted all he could to avoid pretty much everyone who had been around him during it.

It was futile, of course. There was no way for him to remember every single face that had been watching him during that moment. Because of that, he had to act on hunches. That tactic, in turn, lead him to avoid half the people who were attending the festival.

Maybe he was being paranoid; or maybe he was being stupid. But he preferred that to hearing those girls' ridiculing giggles once again. Oh, no, no, no. That sound would haunt him for weeks to come.

A few hours after midday, Jaune grew tired of avoiding the same people over and over again, so he crossed the town's boundaries to take a breath of fresh air. He was very surprised to find that to the west, the very opposite direction from the beach, there was a green field filled with flowers and fruitful bushes and trees.

"Huh," he put his hands on his hips in wonder. "Maybe this is the reason they have the Flower Festival. Or they just thought the name sounded nice," he shrugged. "Probably the second option."

He wandered through the field for a while, examining the flora with mild interest. Flowers were cool, but they reminded him of girls, and girls currently reminded him of the giggles. Maybe in the future, once he surpassed this day's trauma, he would be more appreciative of them.

Jaune slowed his pace when he spotted someone else wandering the fields, all alone, crouching to inspect some flowers on the ground. It took him a moment for him to realize it was a girl. She was small, cute, had red hair, and most importantly, he definitely did not remember her from the incident. Finally, luck was on his side.

He mustered his most charming smile and strut towards her, swinging his arms by his sides in a way he imagined was very suave – truthfully, it just looked very dumb, and had a real risk of dislocating his shoulders. In his mind, he went through all the ways he could greet the girl, and how to act according to how she responded. Qrow had taught him to think of the big picture, after all, and what was the big picture if not all aspects of life, including romance?

Finally, he stopped at her side and opened his mouth to speak. Suddenly, she rose and turned towards him.

"Hey, Jaune," Ruby said casually.

"AH!" he yelled in surprise and jumped back, almost falling in the process. "Ruby! I thought you were a girl!"

"Uhm…" she frowned. "You know, if I wasn't your friend, I would probably be very offended."

"Sorry," Jaune sighed. "I mean, I thought you were a girl _I didn't know_. Oops! Heh, that was a close one, right?"

He elbowed her playfully. Ruby stared at him silently for a moment, before diverting her eyes to the side.

"Why do you never hit on me, Jaune?" she asked slowly, then blushed and covered her mouth. "Wait – that came out wrong! I don't want you to hit on me! And I don't want to hit on you! I'm just asking a question!"

"Jeez, Ruby, settle down! I got it," Jaune said. He was a little weirded out by the question, but he also found the way she asked it kind of funny. Yet as he thought about it, he began to realize he didn't have a real answer. "Uh… I don't know. I never felt like doing it. You're more of a friend than a girl."

"Oh, so I'm not a girl?!" Ruby crossed her arms, actually upset this time.

"Ruby, that's not what I meant!" he exclaimed in distress. "You know I'm not good with words. What I'm trying to say is… you're more important to me than just a girl I wanna hit on, or be with, or anything like that, okay? You're my best friend," he paused. "You're the first friend I ever had, actually. The first person to not treat me like a useless dork."

Ruby's mouth hung agape, and she felt her eyes stung as tears threatened to come pouring out all of a sudden. Without even thinking about it, she wrapped her arms around Jaune and pressed herself against him, as if her very life depended on it. "You're also my first friend ever, Jaune. I'm glad you were the one who found me in that iceberg."

"Yeah, well, I had very heavy tools at hand to break the ice," Jaune said awkwardly. "Of course you're glad it was me."

Ruby rolled her eyes at him, then sat down on the ground, now looking a lot more cheerful than before. Quietly, she plucked a flower from the earth and spun it between her fingers, admiring its subtle beauty. Jaune sat down beside her, and for a while, they stayed that way, enjoying each other's presence in silence – which was not very common for either of them, and that made the occasion all the more special.

"So, what are you doing here?" Ruby asked.

"Escaping from public shame," Jaune shrugged. "You?"

"Uh… escaping from Weiss," she answered half-heartedly.

Jaune was relieved that she didn't press for more information about his motive, but the tone of her voice worried him a little. "What do you mean? Was she being a jerk or something?"

"Nah. I think she's having fun, actually. She was good company," Ruby said. "But…" she trailed off, her cheeks coloring a bit.

"But?" Jaune leaned towards her, peering at her as if he were a detective of some kind.

"Can you keep a secret?" She turned to look at him seriously. "You can _never_ tell Weiss! If you do, I'll unleash all my Avatar powers on you!"

Jaune highly doubted she would follow up on that threat, but the mere fact that she had said something like that demonstrated how serious she was. He nodded and hung back a bit farther, not wanting to make her uncomfortable during whatever confession she had to make.

"Alright. I, uh… I kinda like Weiss. Like a lot? Not like a friend – I mean, I like her as a friend too, but also as _more_ than a friend," as Ruby spoke, her cheeks got redder and redder, to the point that it was making it very difficult for Jaune to distinguish her hair from her face. "Do you understand what I'm saying, or am I being too silly?"

"No, I think I got it. You've got a crush on Weiss, basically," Jaune looked up as he recalled some very strange occurrences during the last weeks of their journey. With this new piece of information, Ruby's recent behavior made much more sense. "Huh. Man, I should have realized that sooner. I'm dense, aren't I?"

"And she's even denser!" Ruby exclaimed in frustration. "I've been sending messages her way all day, but she doesn't get them! I drew us holding hands in the sky, for Pete's sake!"

"Oh, yeah. I thought maybe that was you with the scythe," Jaune nodded thoughtfully. "But I don't understand why Weiss had a banana attached to her head?"

"It was her ponytail!" Ruby buried her face in her hands. " _Gaah_! I'm a failure. I should just handed myself over to the Fire Nation. The world will have to go on without an Avatar."

Jaune shook his head in amusement, but made an effort to not let Ruby realize how funny the conversation was to him. It was like seeing the world from the very opposite view that he was used to, so he understood exactly how Ruby was feeling. He patted her back in a gesture of companionship while coming up with a way to cheer her up again.

"Ruby, have you considered the possibility that Weiss _has_ noticed how you feel about her, but she just doesn't feel the same way?" Jaune fought the urge to punch himself in the face. What a way to cheer someone up! "Maybe she's not interested in girls."

"What? Why the heck would someone _not_ be interested in girls?" Ruby asked incredulously.

"Ah, I forgot. Sheltered upbringing," Jaune gulped. Well, this was one conversation he never thought he would have, especially with the Avatar, of all people. "Didn't your mother explain? Most girls like boys only; and boys generally like only girls. But, uh, some people like everyone. Or no one at all? It gets kinda complicated real fast, actually."

"Jaune," Ruby laid a hand on his shoulder. "You are blowing my mind right now," she took a few moments to process those enlightening revelations before speaking again. "Alright. But what if she _does_ like girls?"

"I don't know if she does, but she's never done or said anything to prove otherwise." With the way this conversation was going, Jaune was becoming more and more tempted to dig his way underground until he ended up at the other side of the world. "Look, Ruby. You're a very straightforward kind of gal. It's not in your nature to be secretive, and I think that's part of the reason I never noticed you like Weiss. The same probably applies to her. So, if you want her to know, you're gonna have to tell her word by word. Okay?"

Ruby stared at him in horror. Jaune couldn't help but sympathize with her. After all, he had tried to gain the princess' affection many years ago, and his pride was never the same after that day – not to mention his back, which he suspected _still_ hadn't healed fully.

After a while, however, Ruby seemed to gain a sudden surge of confidence, as she rose to her feet and put her hands on her hips. "You know what?! You're right, Jaune! Love is a thing too beautiful to be avoided because you're afraid! If we, as human beings, as proud inhabitants of Remnant, are to be happy, we must never falter! We must never be hesitant!" She took a deep breath. "I, Ruby, like Weiss, and if Weiss doesn't like Ruby, I'm just gonna have to deal with it!"

She marched away with purpose, while Jaune just stared in disbelief. To say he was surprised by her impromptu speech would be an understatement. Before he could recover from it, however, Ruby turned around and marched right back to him.

"But first," she raised a finger patiently. "I should probably get her a flower or something."

* * *

 Ruby walked through the streets of the town once again. The sun was setting over the horizon, painting the sky in a beautiful shade of orange. She didn't pay much attention to that, though. She was far too nervous to appreciate the marvels of the world.

Her shoulders were raised stiffly as she held her newest acquisition close to her chest, as if to protect it from the very wind. Jaune and her had spent a long time searching for the perfect gift, and Ruby thought this one was as good as it could get. A rose identical to all the others except in its color. By some freak incident of nature, its petals were as white as snow, when they should have been red.

She was still nervous. Weiss had said it herself – she wasn't a fan of exchanging flowers as an expression of love. But what else could Ruby do? And, anyway, it's the intent that counts. She only hoped Weiss would agree with that thought.

The last obstacle now was finding the princess, of course. People were starting to go back to their homes and the artists and merchants were packing up for the day, but that didn't make it any easier to spot Weiss. Part of Ruby was glad for the delay, but she knew the more time she spent looking, the more nervous she would become, and she was already shaking in her boots.

"Breathe in. Breathe out," she muttered to herself. "Fuuuh… At least Jaune's not here to make fun of me… I would never live this down…"

She slowed her steps as she arrived at the center of the town, where all the main attractions had been set up beforehand. Half of them were gone already. A few people were still strolling about. Weiss was nowhere to be seen.

Ruby breathed out again and sat down on a bench. If she didn't take a break, she feared she would burst from how nervous she was. She watched the people that passed by, putting her current objective aside to relax for a while.

Now that she had it in mind, it was very clear to her that Jaune was right. Most of the couples she was seeing were composed of a man and a woman. Weird that she had never noticed that before. Maybe her people just didn't care that much about that – the Air Nomads were free spirits, after all, not as attached to matters of the body as the other peoples of the world. Yeah, that sounded about right.

Then why hadn't her mother told her anything about that? Perhaps she had thought she was too young for the topic. It didn't sound like a very sensible thing to do, however, and her mother had always been on point with what she taught Ruby… Had… hadn't she said something…?

_And one day, sweetheart, you'll have your own children, and I'll be a grandmother. I can picture it… The Air Nomads, rebuilt in all their glory, because of you. Doesn't that sound neat?_

"Oh."

She remembered now. Such a hopeful message, yet she had been so young; its meaning had escaped her. How could she have forgotten?

Ruby looked down at her flower, her white rose, and a multitude of emotions struck her in unrelenting waves. First confusion, then sadness, despair, frustration, and finally, anger.

Her knuckles turned white as she closed her fingers around the rose's stem. It snapped, and the top half of the flower fell severed on her lap. Soundlessly, Ruby got up, not sparing a glance to the rose as it dropped to the floor, and walked away with heavy steps.

* * *

 Sunset had come and gone, and Ruby was nowhere to be found. Weiss searched around the town, assuming she was enjoying the last moments of the festival, but it was in vain. The redheaded dolt was nowhere to be found.

Disappearing without explanation wasn't uncommon behavior for Ruby, of course, but considering how they had spent their day, Weiss was beginning to suspect this time was different. It had been a fun festival, but Weiss had been a little too critical of it at times, and maybe that had upset Ruby.

"Heavens above," Weiss sighed tiredly, looking up at the sky. "If only I had known what this journey would entail…"

Dealing with Ruby should not be so complicated. Ignoring the fact that she was the Avatar and the last alive member of her people, she was pretty simple. But perhaps believing that was Weiss' fundamental mistake, and she did not understand Ruby as well as she thought.

Ruby wasn't the Avatar one moment and a clueless, cheerful young girl the next. There was no distinction between the two. Ruby was Ruby – likely more complicated than Weiss herself was.

"She must hate me," Weiss muttered. She had never felt so foolish before in her life.

She was torn away from her thoughts as she heard a loud noise coming from somewhere outside the town – it was strange, similar to an explosion, but severely muffled. A screech followed, so horrible that Weiss immediately covered her ears with her hands.

People ran past her, heading deeper into the village. Weiss hesitated for a moment, constructing dozens of possible explanations in her mind, before following her instinct and sprinting in the very opposite direction.

She arrived at the edge of the town and stood at the tip of her toes, quickly identifying the source of the commotion. In the beach not too far from the town, a gigantic eel-like Grimm rose from the water, its open mouth displaying rows upon rows of sharp teeth as it kept screeching. Just in front of it, a figure floated upwards, showered in white light.

"Oh, no."

Weiss ran as fast as she could, her feet barely touching the ground. She arrived at the beach and skidded to a halt, drawing her rapier. A hasty glance upwards confirmed her suspicions. Ruby was hovering in front of the beast, her silver eyes shining as they stared at each other. A shiver ran down Weiss' back as she took in that usually compassionate face twisted by pure hatred.

"Ruby!" Weiss shouted. "Get down! You're going to get yourself-"

Ruby swung with both arms, and the winds converged on the Grimm, forcing it down as it protested in agony. Then, she made another gesture, and a blade of water jumped from the sea, freezing solid in the blink of an eye, and cut off the creature's head.

There was no time for Weiss to be relieved, as more Grimm started to emerge, every one of them headed towards Ruby. She was a literal beacon for them, and there was nothing Weiss could do but watch and pray for nothing bad to happen.

Ruby screamed at the top of her lungs, but it wasn't her voice only – the entire line of Avatars screamed along with her, voices old and young, male and female, from every nation of the world. The air and the ocean delivered brutal destruction on the Grimm, responding to Ruby's command as if they were hers, and only hers to control.

Weiss took a step back, slowly sheathing her rapier. She couldn't find the courage to call to Ruby anymore. What if she did, and that hateful stare fell on her? Would Ruby know to differentiate enemy from ally?

" _Holy crap_."

Weiss looked back and saw Jaune standing behind her. He looked as scared as she felt. After a while, his eyes left Ruby and turned to Weiss.

"Why is…?" he asked shakily. "What did you say to her…?"

"What?!" Weiss exclaimed, both surprised and offended by his question. "I didn't say anything! She went missing for hours, and when I found her, she was already like this…"

"A-alright. Lucky you," Jaune gulped. "Seriously. The Festival is supposed to drive Grimm away, but Ruby is so angry she's drawing a whole horde _by herself_!"

"Maybe… maybe it's because she's the Avatar?" Weiss said, but something was telling her that wasn't the case at all.

Minutes passed without Ruby letting up, destroying every Grimm that appeared before her. In her fury, she neglected all she had learned about properly fighting the creatures, and they kept reforming incredibly fast, fueled by her own emotions. It was looking to be a never-ending battle.

But slowly, her rage began to fade. Her bending became more controlled, the brutality in it giving way to precise efficiency. The Grimm turned to smoke, and they stopped coming back. Finally, the sea was empty once again.

Ruby floated down, landing gracefully on the beach. Her eyes turned back to normal, and her arms hung weakly by her sides. Weiss and Jaune raced towards her, both fearing she would collapse.

"Ruby!" Jaune yelled. "Are you okay?!"

"What was that all about?" Weiss asked.

The redhead bit her lip and looked away. "I'm fine now," she said throatily. "It was nothing."

"No, it clearly wasn't!" Weiss frowned. "Ruby, you don't get to do something like that and brush it off as if it didn't mean anything."

"I don't wanna talk about it," Ruby insisted, her face riddled with guilt. "Please just leave me alone."

"Ruby, you're going to tell me, or else I'll-"

"Just leave me _ALONE_!"

Weiss flinched, Ruby's words striking harder than any bending she could have done. The princess faltered, shoulders slumped in defeat, then turned to walk away. If that was what Ruby wanted, then-

By the corner of her vision, she saw Ruby reach out and grab Jaune by his wrist.

"Oh, I see how it is!" Weiss spun around, fists clenched at her sides. Her whole body was trembling with rage. " _He_ doesn't need to go, of course! Why, he's perfect, I'm the one who's an awful person! I mean, it's not like I've traveled halfway across the globe just to take you to the North Pole! It's not like I've swallowed my pride again and again to teach you waterbending when I could have very well refused! I-it's not like I left my ship's crew behind as a distraction just so you could be safer!"

"Weiss," Jaune muttered. "Calm down." Ruby was practically glued to him, her eyes brimming with tears.

"No, I am _not_ going to calm down! If you want to treat her like a child, then that's your choice," Weiss spat. "I'm sorry, I really am, but I am not going to endure this anymore! I get that you live a very difficult life, Ruby, much more difficult than most people's, but that doesn't mean you can dismiss everyone else's hardships. I'm risking a lot on this journey, but I've never used that against you – in fact, I've put my feelings aside more times than I can count so I could support _you_ ," she paused. "I guess expecting you to do the same was just too much to ask."

She stopped talking and waited for a response. When Ruby stayed silent, she scoffed and turned around.

"I'll find us an inn to stay overnight," she said. "Have your little talk. I don't care."

Without another word, she walked away as composedly as she could, but the farther she got, the harder it became to stay calm. Her eyes stung. She felt like dropping to her knees and curling into a ball.

But she just kept walking and never looked back.

* * *

 It took almost a whole hour for Ruby to speak again. Jaune sat with her at the beach and waited patiently, though. He could see the impact of Weiss' words had on Ruby, and considering she had been upset enough before, he could only imagine how she felt now. Yet she didn't cry, which he found admirable. He would be bawling his eyes out if he were in her shoes.

"I shouldn't have told her to go away," Ruby muttered. "She hates me now."

"No. Weiss was just so worried, she snapped. It'll pass," Jaune said. It sounded naïve, but he truly believed things would be okay in the end. "I didn't know she had so much anger bottled up, though. Sounds like there's a lot of stuff we don't know about her."

"Yeah," Ruby nodded meekly. "She was right, I don't care about her enough. And here I was with that stupid crush…"

Jaune shook his head sadly. There wasn't anything he could say that would get through to Ruby as she was now, so he chose to stay silently instead.

"I can't be with her anyway," Ruby hugged her legs and rested her head on her knees. "I need to rebuild the Air Nomads."

"Huh?" Jaune blinked, caught off-guard by the remark.

"Yeah. I just realized this today," she closed her eyes. "Turns out there's even more stuff destiny chose for me. Sounds fair, right?"

Jaune was speechless. He felt like he was sinking as he processed what he had just heard. He didn't even know what emotion he was supposed to feel – anger, despair, helplessness?

Suddenly, Ruby's fit of rage made all the sense in the world. He almost dared to think it hadn't been enough of a reaction. If he was this struck by the harsh reality, she must be feeling much worse.

"I'm sorry," he said, and leaned to the side to hug her. Ruby hugged him back and pressed her face against his shoulder. They stayed this way for many more hours, neither speaking a single word.

* * *

 For what felt like the thousandth time since she had left the South Pole, Weiss ripped a half-written letter apart and tossed it in the trash. This night was particularly rough; her hands were almost completely covered in ink, dried or not, and they wouldn't stop shaking, no matter how much she tried to make it stop.

_Dad, I'm sorry-_

_I'm coming home, I know I shou-_

_Winter-_

_Please don't be mad, I just-_

She had to resist the temptation to trash the room, the only thing stopping her was the fact that it was rented. She was more than ready to unleash every pent-up emotion inside her, she only needed a target.

Why couldn't she write a single letter. Just a few words, that was all she needed. It would be better than coming home unannounced. Why, why, why…

Weiss dropped to the floor and sat against the end of her bed, staring blankly at the wall in front of her. Suddenly, she wasn't feeling anything anymore. She was just… empty, and tired.

Someone knocked on her door, but she refused to get up to answer. A few seconds later, it opened, revealing Ruby. Weiss looked at her briefly before turning her eyes back to where they had been before.

There was a heavy moment of silence, then Ruby went and sat beside her. "I'm sorry."

"…Me too," Weiss muttered. "I didn't mean to say those things. I was way out of line."

"You were right, though," Ruby noted. "I never worry about you like you worry about me. I'm selfish."

"I think you have a right to be selfish. Besides… you can't just invent worries out of thin air," Weiss said. "You don't know a lot about me, and it's not your fault. I don't share enough with you. I never told you why I lived in the South Pole; or how my relationship with my family is; or the true reason I didn't want to teach you waterbending…"

Ruby shook her head fervently. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she raised her chin determinedly. "I'll just worry about you for no reason at all, if that's what it takes!"

That brought a smile out of Weiss. "Alright, then. You don't have to tell me why you were upset, too. We all have stuff we want to keep private, for one reason or another. Doesn't mean we hate each other."

Ruby smiled and leaned against Weiss. She closed her eyes and mumbled something.

"What was that?" the princess asked softly.

"Love you," Ruby repeated in the same tone, then promptly started to snore.

"Oh, sure. Sleep _on me_ , I don't mind," Weiss pretended to be annoyed, but she couldn't keep that up for long. After a quick look around to make sure nobody was watching, she patted Ruby on the head and closed her eyes too. "I love you too, you dork."

* * *

  _A Water Tribe ship has been spotted on Haven. Rumors that its waiting to take someone to the North Pole. Jackpot, boss?_

General Torchwick smiled victoriously and crumpled the letter between his hands. Jackpot, indeed. The Avatar might as well paint a target on her back and hold up a sign saying 'capture me, please'.

He got up from his chair in his office to tell the captain of his ship to make way to Haven, when his door opened and two people came in. One was Neo, wearing her typical mischievous grin. The other was a burly man wearing a Fire Nation officer uniform, who he didn't recognize.

"And who might you be, now?" Roman raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"…Junior," the officer closed his eyes in anticipation.

"Hah! _Junior_! That's great," Roman chuckled. "Alright. What are you doing here with sweet little Neo?"

Junior looked at Neo to check if she was going to mimic an explanation, but she only shrugged and gestured for him to go ahead.

"We met up on the road. She told me you're looking for the Grimm Lady, right?" Junior crossed his arms. "Well, I've got a lead, and I'm willing to share it for free, as long as I get to teach her a lesson myself."

"Oh, sure! I'm famed for my generosity!" Roman boasted. "So, what's the lead?"

"It's a little farfetched, I'll admit," Junior said seriously. "Have you ever met the Fire Lord's daughter?"

Roman stared at him incredulously for a moment, then cracked a wide smile.

Jackpot, _indeed_.


	15. An Unsafe Haven

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Fifteen: An Unsafe Haven**

* * *

"You know, things were a lot more exciting when I just wanted to capture the Avatar," Yang covered her mouth with a hand and yawned. "Did time always go so slowly? It didn't, right?"

Taiyang raised an eyebrow at his daughter. He understood her reasoning, but really, he found it hard to sympathize with her when she was sunbathing on the deck of their ship.

"Well, maybe you'd be less bored if you went out to do something, like… asking around for word about the Avatar?" He suggested.

"Yeah, and what would that accomplish? We know she's coming here," Yang shrugged. "It's only a matter of time."

Taiyang's left eye twitched a few times as he registered her last phrase. "Then _why_ are you complaining?"

"Me, complaining?" She closed her eyes and fidgeted in her reclining chair. "Nope, just thinking aloud. You're the one jumping to conclusions. Hey, mind getting me a juice or something?"

Taiyang stared at her in disbelief. After a while, Yang opened an eye and smiled sweetly at him.

"Orange, please?" she asked. "With one of those cutesy little umbrellas on top."

He sighed. "How could I forget… You're a princess. Fine, I'll get you your juice."

Yang smiled happily as she watched him walk off their ship and into the docks of Haven. She closed her eyes again and rested the back of her head on her arms, appreciating the warmth of the sun on her exposed skin.

It was funny. She had expected to arrive at Haven and wait anxiously each day for the Avatar to appear, yet here she was, wasting her time without a worry in her mind.

Had anything actually changed? Her objective still was the Avatar; the only difference was that capturing her was only a possibility now, instead of an inevitability. Perhaps it was that less aggressive approach that was making her days much more relaxing. It felt better to know that she was giving the girl a chance of explaining herself, at least.

Yet… What if the Avatar didn't listen to her? What if she couldn't move past all the times they'd fought before? Maybe Yang was just fooling herself. Maybe her uncle had gotten into her head and turned her into a full-blown rebel.

She shook her head. "Everything's fine," she muttered. "The sun's warm. The birds are singing. And the ocean smells so good…" She forced herself to smile. "It's only a matter of…"

A loud honk interrupted her moment of peace. Yang sat up straight and looked around, examining the other vessels on the docks. There were a lot of small ships, most designed for fishing or short distance transportation. A couple were Fire Nation – Haven wasn't their territory, not officially, but the Earth Kingdom forces in the city weren't strong enough to keep them out completely. Another stood out among them all; the Water Tribe princess' ship, awaiting the arrival of its owner and the Avatar.

Yang had grown used to the sight of all of those. She kept a careful eye on the Water Tribe's, of course, but the honk hadn't come from that direction. She frowned, taking another long look at the docks… and realized one of the Fire Nation ships had been replaced. The new one bore a golden insignia, which could only mean bad news.

"Oh, come on…" Yang groaned. "Please don't tell me it's…"

"He-llo, princess!" Confirming her suspicions, Roman Torchwick stepped onto her ship with a big smile on his face. "It's been a long time, hasn't it? Too long, I would say!" An eyebrow shot up as he examined her from head to toe. "Enjoying some leisurely time, are you?"

"And what if I am?" Yang reached for her robe, splayed on the ground at her side, and quickly put it on. It wasn't much cover, but it was either that or conversing with the infuriating general in nothing but a bikini. "I guess you got word too, huh?"

"The Avatar's ship? Yeah," he said smugly. "I'm surprised you haven't done anything about it. Surely, incapacitating her crew would be a great start… Unless you have other plans?"

Yang frowned. The way he was speaking, it almost sounded like he wasn't talking about the Avatar, but something else entirely. He was probably trying to find an angle to gain leverage against her, maybe learn something to get her in trouble with her mother.

"I'm just waiting," she said carefully. "Slow and steady wins the race, right?"

"Well, I have no problem with being the rabbit. Although… I didn't take you for a fan of fables," Torchwick put his weight on his cane, leaning in her direction with a knowing expression on his face. "Ever heard the one about the Grimm woman? I heard someone's been taking inspiration from that tale lately… Liberating villages, disrupting important Fire Nation business…"

For a moment, Yang was taken aback, but she quickly regained her former laid-back attitude. If she was lucky, Torchwick hadn't noticed anything.

"You _heard_?" She smiled. "Well, _I_ heard she assaulted a fortress that was under your control. Rescued the Avatar or something?" Yang chuckled. "People love creating rumors. It's probably just some disgruntled Earth commoner that got her hands on some fancy mask. Right?"

"… _Right_ ," he said. "If you'll excuse me, I have some business to attend to. Have a wonderful afternoon, _princess_."

"Oh, I will." Yang glared at him, making sure he got her message.

Torchwick turned and walked down the ship's ramp to the docks. On the way, he passed by Taiyang, who glanced at him warily before hurrying towards her. As promised, he brought a glass of orange juice with him, which she took happily.

"Was that Torchwick I just saw?" he asked, a hint of frustration in his voice. "Doesn't the guy rest?"

"Well, unlike me, mother actually entrusted him with the duty of capturing the Avatar," Yang mumbled as she drank the juice through a straw. "He heard about the ship too."

"I guess it was bound to happen, sooner or later," Taiyang nodded. "What are you going to do?"

Yang was silent for a long while, drinking with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Dad?" She released the straw and looked up at him seriously.

"Yeah?" He frowned in anticipation.

"You forgot my umbrella."

Too perplexed to find the words to respond, Taiyang turned away and marched off the ship again, leaving his daughter to pout by herself in the sunlight.

* * *

Jaune looked gloomily at the bread on his hands, the last piece of their shortening inventory. His stomach grumbled in protest – this was far too little for him to be satisfied. But he couldn't demand more food when everyone else was hungry too, now could he? Even Ruby hadn't been complaining lately, and Jaune was pretty sure she was some kind of food sponge disguised as a human being.

He looked at Weiss over the campfire they had built for the night. They had been careful to make it small and positioned in a way that the smoke would be stopped by the treetops above them. They had had a couple too many bad encounters with the Fire Nation on the way to Haven, and the last thing they wanted was a for a troop of soldiers to be alerted by their fire and barge in on their camp while they slept.

"Do you think Ruby's okay?" he whispered worriedly. "She's been gone for a while."

"She's fine," Weiss said matter-of-factly. She struggled for a moment with a particularly hard portion of her bread and winced in disgust. "It's a starry night. She probably looked up and got distracted," she frowned. "Not that I blame her."

"Yeah, it must be an awesome sight…" Jaune mumbled enviously.

Maybe he was being selfish, but Jaune was getting tired of their never-ending journey. Sure, traveling the world with Ruby, the greatest Avatar ever – in his eyes, at least – and Weiss, a North Pole _princess_ , was a blast, and they had had many moments of fun on the way, but the bad moments were starting to overtake those. He had cramps on his feet; he smelled like a swamp half the time; and the food was somehow worse than his mother's snow soup – yes, _snow soup_. Now more than ever, Jaune wished he had stayed back home, in the comfort of his bed surrounded by his sisters.

A faint rustling from above snapped him from his thoughts. A branch broke off of a tree and fell squarely on his head, making him fall on his side with eyes crossed, moaning in pain. A moment later, Ruby landed beside him with a slight puff of wind, a guilty expression on her face.

"Oops," she said. "Didn't know that would happen! Hehe…"

"Aaaw…" Jaune curled into a ball and pretended to not exist.

"Impressive," Weiss spoke dryly, putting her piece of bread aside. "What did you see, Ruby? Please don't tell me we have even more Fire Nation to worry about."

Ruby's eyes lit up, and she cracked a smile that went from ear to ear. "I saw Haven!" she said. "Well, at least I think it's Haven. It's at the edge of the water, and there were a bunch of big ships docked there."

Jaune sat up, willing to deal with his pain later so he could now be excited about the news. Weiss showed a more reserved reaction. Her lips formed a thin line as she stared into the fire. No doubt she was already making plans.

"Alright. So, as far as we know, Haven is still controlled by the Earth Kingdom," she said. "But judging by how many Fire Nation soldiers we came across, and the battles we've seen between the two nations… I'd say that could change any day now."

"I did see some Fire Nation ships. No soldiers, though," Ruby noted.

"Really?" Weiss frowned. "Maybe they're fighting for dominance over the city. We'll need to be careful when we get there."

"We should probably make a run for the docks tomorrow night," Jaune suggested. "We'll be well rested, and the darkness will cover our movements, hopefully."

"That's a good plan," Weiss said. "And, Ruby? No stopping to help people. There'll be time for that when we get back from the North Pole."

Ruby nodded seriously. She wasn't a fan of leaving people to be helped later, but she knew how important it was that they arrived on their ship as fast as possible. Being the Avatar meant sometimes ignoring the smaller battles in the name of the greater good.

"Alright," Weiss said. "Let's sleep. We'll need all our strength if we want to be successful tomorrow."

"I'll put out the fire!" Ruby exclaimed helpfully, and sent a gush of wind at the campfire. Unfortunately, she put a lot more effort into it than was necessary. Dirt and wood went flying directly at Jaune's face, making him fall on his side once more. "Oops! My bad, Jaune!"

Jaune hugged his knees and started to rock back and forth.

"My suffering never ends…"

* * *

Moonlight shone down on the docks of Haven, reflecting on the pure ocean waters and faintly illuminating the ships rested there. The night was silent except for the rolling of distant waves and the creaking wood of the fishing canoes that floated up and down with them.

Yang knelt down near the edge of a nearby rooftop. She was wearing the clothes Qrow had given her, holding the Grimm mask in her hands for now so she could see better.

They came as silent as the night itself, descending from Torchwick's ship and walking purposefully to the other end of the docks. Lances, swords and shields on their hands; a few brought flames to life in brief flickers, like athletes flexing their muscles before a marathon. To an innocent passerby, it looked like they were about to go to war with the Earth Kingdom, but Yang knew better.

The soldiers stopped before the Water Tribe ship. One of them gestured to his companions, and suddenly, they all charged up the boarding ramp and into the deck, brandishing their weapons above their heads like madmen.

Yang's hands curled into fists as she heard steel clash against steel and the familiar noise of fire streaking through the air in great velocity. Doors slammed against walls; sailors yelled in surprise as they were awakened rudely from their sleep. The fight didn't last five minutes, and by the end of it, the Water Tribe crew was kneeled on the ship's deck, hands bound by rope behind their backs and mouths muffled with rags.

"Torchwick…" Yang felt her stomach turning. "What are you playing at…"

The leader of the Fire troop started to speak, walking in front of the line of prisoners in a painstakingly slow pace, no doubt enjoying making the defenseless men suffer. He swung his lance carelessly, its blade sometimes slashing dangerously close to a nose or ear.

Suddenly, one of the sailors stood up and tackled him, sending the soldier stumbling back. His back hit the edge of the ship, and he fell over into the cold ocean water. Muffled laughter came from the prisoners as their captain posed triumphantly, displaying his big belly in the process, but they were quickly silenced when every piece of steel present was pointed their way again.

The Fire Nation captain returned a few minutes later, soaked from head to toe. He glared angrily at the perpetrator of his infortune, then pointed a finger back at the docks. Wordlessly, his men roused up the prisoners and forced them into a lane down the boarding ramp.

Yang watched them walk into the city, her arms trembling at her sides. The sword at her hip suddenly felt much heavier, yet when she brought her hand to it, she couldn't bring herself to unsheathe it.

Why was she so angry? Those weren't her men. They had once been her enemies. And while she disliked Torchwick, he was her ally, even if only by obligation. She should be feeling nothing but approval of what was happening.

But… But this was _wrong_! She could tell it from the faces of the sailors, terrified and rebellious alike, men who were only doing their jobs, thrown into a situation they did not deserve. And the Fire Nation soldiers – _her allies_ – smiling proud of their undignified attack!

"No. You're not a traitor," she muttered. "You're not a traitor. Just let it go. Nothing bad is gonna happen. They're just… leverage…"

She looked down at her mask. It seemed to be staring right back at her, peering into her very soul, judging, _accusing_ her.

A scowl on her face, Yang stood up. She covered it with her mask and moved to follow the soldiers and prisoners from above.

* * *

Weiss was the first one to wake up, just before the sun started to rise on the horizon. She waited a while before rousing Ruby and Jaune. After a brief meal that marked the inevitable end of their supply, they resumed their journey towards Haven.

The road they took brought them onto open plains, where they could easily have been seen by friendly and hostiles forces alike. Luckily, it looked like nobody was out there except for them. It was too early for military endeavors, especially for soldiers that were already engaged in a battle for months.

By midday, the city could be seen in the distance. Haven was the very definition of a port town, with the sea surrounding it in all directions but south. It was an important location due to its proximity to the North Pole. Whoever controlled it had a much easier time maintaining contact with the Water Tribe.

Weiss had been there, once, many years ago, when she had left her home. She'd rested there for a week or two before making her way to the South Pole. It looked just the same as it had been then. She wondered if the people there were still as welcoming as before. Probably not. The war and the Grimm had a way of changing people's disposition towards strangers.

When they got close to the city, Weiss pulled the group aside onto a little alcove between two rocky spires at the seashore, where they would be protected from prying eyes.

There, they waited for night to fall, Ruby and Jaune sharing stories they'd already told dozens of times throughout their journey. Normally, Weiss would have snapped and demanded everyone just stay quiet, but she was too nervous, and hearing her friends talk distracted her from the mission that awaited them.

"Hey, Weiss," Ruby called, the sun setting behind her back, its light reflecting off her hair like fire. She wore a goofy smile on her lips, and her arms rested comfortably at her sides. "You know everything's gonna be okay, right?"

"Yeah," Jaune agreed, giving her a thumbs up. "No one's gonna stop us. And if anyone tries, we'll kick their butts!"

Weiss was struck silent for a moment, her mind reeling at her friends' confident words. Then, she smiled too, letting herself be filled with newfound hope and determination. "They will never see us coming."

* * *

As the moon hovered in the sky, a Fire Nation soldier found himself patrolling the docks of Haven with what was probably the most annoying companion he had ever had the displeasure of meeting.

"So, you got any idea who that ship belongs to? And why is the boss so interested in it?"

"It belongs to a Water Tribe princess, you dingus," the soldier sighed. "The same one who's traveling with the Avatar. Remember her?"

"Uh, no. What's that got to do with anything?"

"Really, Perry? The boss wants to capture her, obviously, to get to the Avatar. At least that's what I think."

"Aah. Makes sense. But couldn't we just blow the ship up? That'd be fun!"

The soldier growled, preparing a not-so-friendly answer, but before he could open his mouth, a strange sound occurred behind him, like something big had just fallen into the air. When he turned around, Perry was struggling to stay afloat in the sea, and a redhead girl stood where he had just been.

"Sorry about that," Ruby grinned. "And this too!" She swung her staff, sending the soldier flying to the water too with gust of wind.

"Go, go, go!" Weiss yelled, racing past her. "Up the ramp, come on!"

Ruby sprinted after her, accompanied by Jaune, who had taken his sword out just in case. Together, they arrived at their ship and climbed up its boarding ramp. A couple soldiers were there, but Ruby dispatched them in the same manner as before.

"Jaune, stay here and watch out for approaching forces," Weiss ordered. "Ruby, you're with me!"

The princess kicked open the door to the captain's cabin and took a look inside, but it was empty. Then, she entered the living quarters, Ruby following close behind. They examined each room carefully, expecting an ambush at any moment, but everything was at its proper place and nobody came out to attack them.

Weiss was about to speak up when a shrill scream came from outside. Ruby disappeared in a rush of air, and the princess followed as fast as she could. They arrived at the deck once again, where they found Jaune down on the ground, crawling away from a masked figure with a sword on her hand.

"Step away from him!" Weiss shouted furiously, not even thinking as she summoned a string of water from the ocean and launched it towards the stranger at top speed.

"Weiss, no!" Ruby swung her staff upwards, redirecting the attack upwards just in time to avoid it hitting the stranger.

"Ruby!" The princess glared at her. "Explain yourself."

Ruby looked helplessly at her, then at the stranger. After a moment, the swordswoman reached for her mask and removed it, revealing herself to be…

"Sorry," Yang said mutely, her violet eyes straying to Jaune, who was still on the ground. "I didn't mean to scare you. Is this better?"

"Is this better?!" he exclaimed in disbelief. "You're the maniac who's been trying to capture Ruby ever since we met her!"

"Uh, yeah. About that. My bad," Yang frowned. "I've, uh… rethought my methods," she turned towards Ruby and bowed slightly. "I'm really, really sorry."

Weiss looked at Ruby, expecting a heated response. From the look on Yang's face, it seemed she had similar expectations. Yet Ruby just smiled and waved the apology away as if it meant nothing.

"Okay. Apologies accepted."

"I understand, I really am sorry, but if you – wait, what?" Yang blinked. "You're just… okay with me? After everything I did?"

"I mean, you weren't _that_ much trouble, to be honest," Ruby shrugged. "As long as you stop chasing me around, we're okay."

It took a moment for anyone to say anything. Jaune seemed very cross with Yang still, sitting on the ground rubbing his sore back, while Weiss just stared incredulously at Ruby. Yang herself looked clueless as to how to react.

"Well… that won't be a problem. I think I'm done with all that nonsense," Yang said, then added in a firmer tone. "I _am_ done."

"Oh, are you now? That's just marvelous," Weiss glared at Yang. "We're all very grateful you got over that little phase."

" _Look_ ," Yang seemed ready to defend herself, but her mouth hung open, and soon she slumped her shoulders and pursed her lips. "It was complicated."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I'm sure it was. Can you at least explain what you're doing on my ship?"

"That I can do!" Yang perked up. "I've actually been waiting for you guys to show up here for a while. I wasn't planning on doing anything bad, just talk. But yesterday, Torchwick showed up…"

"Oh, not that jerk again!" Ruby whined.

"…and he took your whole crew hostage," Yang continued. "I would have stopped him, except it's not that easy. He's a General acting on the Fire Lord's orders, and I kinda am the royal princess, _so_ … Not that that's an excuse."

Weiss frowned, her discount with Yang's presence promptly forgotten as her thoughts turned to the safety of her crew. If any of them had come to harm, she would never be able to forgive herself.

"Just when I think that guy can't get any worse," Ruby took out her staff. "Can you tell us where Torchwick took them?"

"I can do you one better and take you there," Yang said. "You can count on my blade too."

"Didn't you just say you couldn't fight him because you're a princess?" Jaune asked.

Yang turned to him and offered a hand. "Yep, and I also said that's no excuse."

Jaune stared at her hand for a moment, then took it and stood back up. "I guess any help's welcome at this point."

"Hey, thanks, dude!" Yang exclaimed cheerfully.

"One wrong move, and I'll freeze you solid," Weiss interjected, and there wasn't a hint of playfulness in her voice.

Yang looked at Ruby for help, but the redhead could only offer a slight shrug and a smile.

* * *

They walked back to the city, making their way through the empty streets, their footsteps the only sound in the quiet night. Yang walked ahead, wearing her mask again, while the others lagged behind cautiously.

Eventually, Ruby glanced at Jaune and Weiss, then quickened her steps to match Yang. "Hey," she whispered. "Uhm… I know this isn't really the time, and I did say we were okay and all, but…"

Ruby trailed off, and Yang turned to look at her, only her violet eyes visible beneath the mask. "But?"

"I don't know. I'm just curious, I guess," Ruby said. "Why are you helping us out? Not that I'm complaining, it's just a little sudden."

"Torchwick's a really bad dude, and what he's doing right now is really messed up," Yang replied simply. "I can't just stand by and let him get away with it."

"But… you're, you know, Fire Nation," Ruby noted meekly. "Isn't that the type of stuff you guys do?"

" _No_ ," Yang clenched her fists. "Well, _yes_. But we're not supposed to. Torchwick gives us firebenders a bad name. Him, and my mother. And pretty much everyone else except my dad," she sighed. "Honestly, I don't think even I understand what I'm doing anymore. Everything's a mess. I'm just trying to make up for the bad stuff."

"Alright. That's a nice thing to do," Ruby nodded. She was silent for a while, mulling over her next question, wondering if she should even ask it. "And… you don't think I'm a bad person anymore, do you?"

Yang slowed down a little. "…No, I don't. But we don't really know each other, so how can I be sure?" she shrugged. "I guess that's another reason why I'm here. What better way to get to know someone than to jump head-first into danger with them, right?"

"We _could_ just play cards. That sounds safer," Ruby said.

" _And_ much less fun."

"Oh, yeah, I definitely agree with you there."

They came to a halt at a corner. Yang waited for Weiss and Jaune to catch up, then pointed at a warehouse at the other side of the street. A few soldiers stood guard outside, barely hidden in the shadows, the glinting of their weapons the only sign of them being there.

"Did they see us?" Jaune asked. "I mean, we're not exactly the stealthiest people around…"

"If they did, they would have called for help or something," Yang said. "We'll need a plan. Your people are inside that place, being watched by a _whole lot_ more soldiers than these, maybe as much as twenty. Torchwick's is sure to be there, too."

"There's no way we can take on that many, especially if you're planning on not using your firebending." Weiss stated almost accusatorily.

"Hey, I'm risking a lot already," Yang glared at her. "If you're gonna complain, then-"

"Let's divide them," Jaune interrupted her. "Ruby and Weiss, you draw them out here. Yang, you take out the ones that stay inside. I'll sneak around and free our guys."

"Yeah, that sounds-" Yang did a double-take. "Wait, what's your name again? And when did you become so useful?"

"It's a recent development," Weiss rolled her eyes. "I suspect it's not permanent either."

She walked towards the warehouse, and Ruby followed her, readying her staff for combat. Yang fixed her mask more firmly on her head, then drew her sword and sneaked away.

"Oh, okay. Just leave me standing here, I don't mind," Jaune mumbled bitterly. "And the name's Jaune. Not that you'd remember, anyway."

* * *

Roman Torchwick's steps echoed in the huge warehouse as he walked from one end of it to the other, his hands joined behind his back. He had an impassive expression on his face, though that was no indication of his true feelings.

Taking the Water Tribe men had been ridiculously easy, so much so that he hadn't even had to help. None of them were benders, for a start, and for some reason they hadn't put someone on guard while the rest slept. That was an open invitation for an attack, in his mind at least.

But the sweetness of that victory had been short-lived. Yes, Roman had them all under his control, but there was nothing to be done with them. They were only bait, and the Avatar could be still be weeks away, for all he knew. And he couldn't very well leave his men alone to watch them, knowing how incompetent they all were.

Perhaps that was the price of being a tactical genius; waiting, biding his time, instead of rejoicing in his deserved glory. But he knew everything would pay out in the end.

He stopped briefly to look over the line of sailors kneeled on the floor towards the back of the warehouse. He had been too smug to notice it at first, but now he could clearly see their spirits weren't broken. A quiet fire burned in their eyes as they stared at him, sending a wordless challenge.

"So it's true what they say about you men of the north," Roman said with vague intrigue. "Here you are, helpless in the middle of overwhelming enemies, yet you just won't stop giving me those looks. That's brave, I'll give you that," he chuckled. "Let's see how long that will last. We've got _a lot_ of time before our young friends get here."

He ignited a fireball in his left hand tossed it upwards playfully. A smirk formed on his lips when he saw one of the sailors flinch and turn his face away.

"Oh," Roman clucked his tongue in mock disappointment. "Looks like you're not so tough, after all. Guess I'll take this as a lesson about not believing everything people say."

The sailors' captain glared at him, his face becoming red with fury. It was quite a hilarious look, because he had the thickest moustache Roman had ever seen, and it did not go very well with that expression.

Before he could make a comment about that, he was distracted by a sudden noise coming from outside, near the entrance of the warehouse. It sounded like people speaking, though Roman suspected it wasn't his soldiers – they had been ordered not to talk unless strictly necessary, and they knew better than to disobey him.

Brushing off an approaching soldier, Roman strut to the entrance and pushed open the doors. He stepped outside and saw the guards he had stationed outside standing together, weapons raised, with two girls not too far in front of them.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise, but a moment later he recovered and cracked a smile, not quite believing his luck. "Ah, ladies! You've arrived at last!" He bowed mockingly. "I've been waiting eagerly."

Ruby rolled her eyes at him and took a step back, bringing her staff in front of her. Weiss flicked her hands, bending the liquid out of the waterskins on her waist.

"I assume this is where you're keeping my crew," the princess said impetuously. "I must admit, Torchwick. I knew you were a cretin, but this is beyond what I thought you were capable of. Taking hostages, really?" she scoffed. "And you wonder why no one trusts the Fire Nation."

"Oh, I don't wonder anything, darling. I'm quite comfortable with who I am," Roman grinned. "Results are results, and I'm the one in a winning position right now. What do I care what the losers think of me?"

"Don't bother, Weiss," Ruby muttered angrily. "He's just in this for the reward."

Weiss glanced at her briefly, almost losing her grasp on the water. Maybe she was surprised by the Avatar's words. Heck, even Roman was. It looked like the little redhead was finally learning how the real world worked.

"Since you're so bothered by my tactics, princess, let me make a suggestion – something that will surely appeal to your sense of justice," Roman said. "You hand over the Avatar, and I will release your men without a fight. No tricks. No surprises," he pointed his cane at Ruby. "She deserves to be judged, after all! Not that I give a crap about that, of course, but it's what's right, and what's right is what _you_ give a crap about, correct?"

Weiss's eyes flashed with contempt. "If you believe I would as much as _consider_ that proposition, then truly, you are a fool."

She raised her arms simultaneously, and the water converged around her and Ruby, spinning quickly, about to shoot off at incredible velocity. Ruby couldn't help but smile a little.

"Alright. Let me try something else, then. I am a reasonable man, if nothing else," Roman's eyes narrowed. "You are a princess of the Northern Water Tribe, ergo, you represent it. By choosing to protect and hide the Avatar for so long, you've already made a target of your nation. The Fire Lord has been too preoccupied with the Earth Kingdom to bother with your worthless tribe, but one more slight, and she _will_ take action," he paused. "Do you want to be the one to start a war, Schnee?"

The girl looked at him with such ferocity that if looks could kill, he would have been lying cold on the ground already. Her body shook visibly, as did her controlled element.

Ruby frowned, her staff lowering gradually. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, then nodded to herself and took a step forward…

"If that's what it takes to protect her, _yes_."

A torrent of water struck Roman in the chest, slamming him against the ground painfully. His soldiers yelled in protest and charged towards the girls, swinging their weapons and shooting fireballs at them. More poured out of the warehouse, joining the fray after hearing the commotion.

Roman struggled to his feet, yelling furiously. He couldn't believe he had been caught off-guard. He had been looking directly at the waterbender, and the Avatar had been about to give herself up! But things refused to go his way, as always…

Or maybe not. As he watched the ensuing battle, he noticed the two girls were having a hard time combating so many foes at once. They fought back to back, but that wasn't nearly enough to deal with the number of soldiers coming at them.

"Heh," Roman smiled arrogantly. "You could have had the easy way… Now look at-"

Something heavy hit the ground behind him, the noise echoing inside the warehouse like a bell. His eyes widened as he realized he had been tricked.

"They're just a distraction!" he yelled to his men. "Get back inside, they're freeing the prisoners!"

He turned around, only to find the tip of a blade hovering right in front of his nose. The Grimm Lady stared at him, features hidden by her mask, though he could swear she was smiling behind it.

" _You_ ," Roman muttered venomously.

She tilted her head slightly, and at the tip of her blade, she saw the reflection of her eyes. _Violet eyes_.

" _Me_."

Suddenly, the sailors came running out of the warehouse, sprinting in the direction of the docks. The Avatar's blonde companion exited last, a relieved expression on his face.

"It worked!" Jaune exclaimed. "I can't believe it worked!"

"The General's not the smartest cookie in the jar," the Grimm Lady said quietly. "Tell your friends they can leave."

Jaune nodded and ran towards Ruby and Weiss, shaking his arms to draw their attention. The Avatar saw him and grinned, then swung her staff in a full circle around her, blowing away the soldiers that surrounded them.

Roman's fists shook at his sides, but he focused his ire on the swordswoman in front of him. "It's sad, really. You were always a thorn on my side," he said. "But I never took you for a full-blown traitor."

She took a half-step backwards, her hold on her sword loosening ever so slightly – and Roman kicked her in the knee with all his force, making her collapse with a pained yell.

He didn't waste his time gloating, though. Instead, he immediately turned and took sight of the rest of his foes again as they ran away. Roman shouted furiously and swung a fist, sending a massive fireball flying towards them.

Ruby gasped and threw her friends further ahead of the blast with a gust of wind, then dived to the ground, barely saving herself. The fireball, having missed its target, struck a house full-on, plunging it into flames and tearing off its ceiling.

* * *

"You idiot!" Yang screamed, not bothering to fake her voice anymore, and rose back to her feet. She landed a punch on the back of Torchwick's head, knocking him down, but not out.

She jumped over him and ran towards the flaming house. Ruby was getting up, still dizzy, but with eyes acutely focused on the disaster in front of her.

"Are there people inside?!" Yang yelled over the noise of the fire. "What if they're-"

"I'm going in!" Ruby shouted, and jumped into the fire without a second warning,

Yang gasped in disbelief, then did the only thing she could think of - she ran right after, bending the fire away from both of them.

It was a strenuous effort. It was one thing for a firebender to control a flame they had summoned themselves; another was to reign in a fire so large and wild, almost like a living thing with a will of its own. It rebelled against her, biting at her body like snakes, making it difficult to think, much less move.

"I found someone!"

Ruby swung her staff upward, creating a path through the fire with her airbending, which revealed an old man hiding beneath his bed. He had probably thought it was safer there, at least from the debris that fell from above, but another few minutes and he would have been done for.

Ruby helped him up and made him lean on her, one arm wrapped around her shoulders. "Is there anyone else here?!" she asked as loud as she could.

"No!" He yelled back. "Get me outta here, please! Please!"

Ruby nodded, then looked hesitantly at Yang. "I can jump from here, maybe! Can you…"

"I'll be fine!" Yang shouted. "Go!"

Ruby made sure the man was holding firmly onto her, then brought her staff down, creating a draft beneath them that sent them soaring high up the air and outside the roaring inferno.

Yang took a deep breath, then made a run back towards the entrance of the house. Halfway there, a wall came down suddenly and she was almost buried beneath it. She jumped over it, hoping she had built enough speed…

And made it outside, rolling on the ground to soften her fall.

A short distance from her was Ruby, laying the old man down as gently as she could, checking carefully for any injuries on him.

"Thank you! Thank you!" he kept exclaiming, tears trailing down his face. "I thought I was done for…" His eyes widened suddenly as he stared up at her. "Wait… You're _her_! You're the Avatar, aren't you?"

Ruby was taken aback for a moment, not knowing what to say. "Yep," she muttered, then leaned down again. "You're okay, right?"

"Yes, yes, all thanks to you!"

Ruby smiled bashfully, then looked up, her expression hardening. Yang followed her gaze and noticed the soldiers were coming back, Torchwick trailing behind them with a mad snarl twist his mouth.

Yang reached for her sword, but it wasn't there anymore – she had dropped it when Torchwick kicked her before. She looked down at her hands, then reached for her mask and took it off.

"Run. I'll slow them down."

Ruby looked at her, startled. "But what about-"

"I'm not asking," Yang said firmly. " _Go_."

After a moment's hesitation, Ruby ran off to rejoin her friends. They disappeared around a corner as Yang planted her feet on the ground.

"Ah. There she is!" Torchwick broke through his soldiers' ranks. "Tired of hiding your face, eh? What's the point of playing hero if nobody knows who you are?"

"Shut up." Yang fixed her mask to the back of her belt. "You have no concept of honor. No concept of responsibility. You're everything that's wrong with the Fire Nation, and I won't allow you to disfigure my banner any longer," she raised her hands, igniting twin flames, and their light reflected of her blood-red eyes. "So, go ahead. Give me your best shot."

"Oh, mommy's not going to like this…" Torchwick stepped back, putting himself behind what remained of his soldiers. "Take her down!"

* * *

The ship's engine came to life as Ruby and her companions climbed aboard, panting after having ran for so long. The crew pulled the boarding ramp up, and finally, the ship left the docks of Haven and made full speed northward.

Ruby and Jaune lied on the floor, exhausted, while Weiss looked around with a smile of relief illuminating her face. She couldn't put to words how glad she was to see everyone on her ship once again, safe and sound and together at last.

"Princess," captain Port approached her, also wearing a bright smile. "It's good to see you again. You've grown, I see."

"Have I?" Weiss laughed lightly. "I guess I have."

"And Miss Ruby," Port turned to look at the Avatar on the floor. "You're looking like an almighty Avatar!"

Ruby raised a thumb weakly, then curled into a ball and fell asleep.

"And… uh… _you_ ," the captain cleared his throat as he gestured at Jaune. "You sure saved us, young man!"

"Thanks, I guess," Jaune said unsurely, then fell asleep too.

Weiss shook her head in wonder. It was just like the two of them to collapse on the deck of the ship at the first opportunity to lie on a comfortable bed again. She couldn't blame them, though. All the fighting and running had drained all energy out of her too.

"So, princess," Port spoke up again. "I assume we are going north, correct?"

"Yes, the plan remains the same. We return to the North Pole and get Ruby a proper waterbending teacher." Weiss nodded.

"I see," he said gravely. "There is still time to turn back, you know?"

"No. It's too late for that," she shook her head sadly. "Besides, we need to get away as fast as possible."

She looked back at Haven. An orange glow permeated the city, and smoke rose toward the stars. The fire Torchwick had ignited had yet to be put out.

"We're at war, captain."

* * *

Taiyang had had some strange nights during the many years since he had left the Fire Nation to travel the world with his daughter, but this one… This one was probably going to be the strangest of them for a long while.

He had been sleeping peacefully in his room, when suddenly the ship came to life and left the docks of Haven. He found his daughter on the deck, panting in exhaustion, wearing the same garb she had been wearing after her long-awaited return a few weeks before.

Apparently, they were heading east at top speed. The problem was… there was absolutely nothing to the east of them except endless sea. Upon interrogation, Yang told him they had to get as far away from Torchwick as possible, because she had just gone against him and saved the Avatar in the process.

Yes. It was a strange night. Hopefully, it wouldn't get any stranger.

"Dad," Yang muttered, leaning against the rails of the ship. The moon reflected on the still ocean waters, a white circle in the middle of the stretching darkness. "Am I a traitor?"

He crossed his arms and looked at her thoughtfully. Saying that question was a hard one to answer would be an understatement. "Everyone's a traitor to something or someone, sweetheart."

"Dad," she sighed. "Don't start with that talk. I want a real answer."

"That _was_ a real answer," Taiyang said. "Betrayal, like most things, is just a matter of perspective. To your mother, I think it's safe to say you are the worst kind of traitor," he paused, laying a hand on his daughter's shoulder as she grimaced. "But I am just as sure that, in the eyes of the Avatar, you've just become an undeniable hero and ally."

"So what?" Yang turned away. "Great, I swapped around the people who hate and love me. Hooray. Everything's changed."

"Look, it doesn't matter what people think of you. What matters is what you feel in your heart," Taiyang said. "So can you tell me, Yang – today, did you betray yourself?"

She was silent for a few minutes, then shook her head and smiled shakily. "No. I'm glad I did what I did," she said. "Even if it means never going back home."

Taiyang smiled in relief. "Don't worry. We'll give it a few years, hide out somewhere, maybe join a circus," he suggested. "Then we go back and hope your mother's calmed down a bit."

Yang laughed at that. As if things ever worked out that easily for their family.

She looked down at her hands. She was still holding the Grimm Lady mask. It still looked a little disturbing, but she was beginning to grow fond of it. But it was probably best if she learned to act without having to wear it.

"Heh. Qrow is a real piece of work," Taiyang chuckled. "You know your mother used to wear an outfit just like that? And she detested it…"

"Really?" Yang frowned. "Yeah, uncle's got a great sense of humor."

"Oh, come on. It's not that bad. She used to wear it during a play. _The Avatar and the Grimm Lady_. We used to participate in it every year; me, Raven and Qrow," he said, looking off into the distance. Yang raised an eyebrow at him, realizing he was revisiting some very old memories. "She was always the Grimm Lady, and I was Helpless Villager Number 2. Qrow was Helpless Villager Number 1, of course, because he was the royal prince and _blah blah blah_ …"

"Wait, there's a play of that?" Yang asked suddenly. "I only _heard_ the story…"

"Yeah. Raven forbade it from being reproduced after she… you know," Taiyang sighed. "She used to love the story before, though."

"But she hated the outfit?"

"Yeah. She was always trying to change roles and play the Avatar, but the playwrights liked her too much as the Grimm Lady."

Yang shook her head. It was a difficult tale to believe; her mother, the terrible Fire Lord, wanting to portray the Avatar in a play. She supposed it made sense, in a twisted way.

"So who did play the Avatar?" Yang asked.

"Avatar Ozpin himself did it once or twice," Taiyang replied. "But most years, it was Summer… She always stole the show."

"Summer? Who's that?"

He turned to look at her seriously, and she could tell there were a million thoughts happening all at once inside his head.

Just as he opened his mouth to speak, seemingly having come to a decision, the ship came to a grinding halt, a terrible screeching noise invading their ears. They almost fell over, but Yang managed to grab onto the railings and looked down. "What the…"

The entire bottom half of the ship was covered in ice, as if the ocean had suddenly frozen solid beneath them. Two figures stood in the slippery surface, apparently staring up at her.

Suddenly, a whip of water wrapped around her right arm. Yang tried to break free, but in the next second she was pulled from the deck and sent flying over the railings, off the ship.

"No!" Taiyang went to jump after her, but a solid block of ice hit him in the forehead, and everything went dark.


	16. The Northern Air Temple

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Sixteen: The Northern Air Temple**

* * *

Ruby hummed contently as she tiptoed on the railings of Weiss' ship, her hands clasped behind her back. The ocean stretched out all around her, an endless blue untainted by even the slightest of waves. Perhaps that calm was a good sign; or maybe it was a warning of bad things to come.

She shrugged and jumped off, landing gracefully on the deck. When they had first left the South Pole and began their journey, Ruby had quickly grown tired of traveling by sea. It had been too monotonous for her. Yet now, even with nothing of note having happened for almost a full week, she couldn't be happier. She had had many fun adventures in the Earth Kingdom, as dangerous as they had been, but even she had to admit slowing down was necessary at some point.

"Enjoying yourself?" Weiss asked, reaching her side with soft steps. She wore a reserved expression Ruby hadn't seen for a long while, perhaps even as far back as the South Pole.

"Yeah. Things are slow, but that's fine..." Ruby smiled mischievously. "For now."

Weiss gave her a knowing look. "Don't worry. We're no more than a week away from the North Pole now," she said. "Though I fear we might have to make a stop along the way – we overestimated our supplies. We might have enough fuel to make it there, but it would be cutting it dangerously close… We could get stuck in the middle of the ocean."

"Eh. I'm sure we could do something about that!" Ruby made an exaggerated waterbending pose, standing on one leg while mimicking the movement of waves with her arms. "Feel the ocean! _Push_!"

"…Yes, everyone's going to love you there," Weiss shook her head in wonder. "Anyway. There's an island along the way where we can make a stop. Apparently, the Northern Air Temple is there, or so say Captain Port's maps."

Ruby's eyes brightened, but a moment later, that light was gone, and her gaze fled from the princess.

"Hey," Weiss said quietly. "You don't have to go if you don't want to. I'm sure Jaune would keep you company in the ship."

Ruby jumped a little and looked back at Weiss, as if she hadn't even noticed how solemn she had just looked. "Nah! I'm fine," she shrugged. "Exploring the Temple sounds fun. Wanna tag along?"

"Maybe later," it was Weiss' turn to look away. "I have some… business to see to when we get to the island. Ask Jaune."

"Duh!" The Avatar rolled her eyes at her, then skipped away.

Weiss scoffed and crossed her arms as she watched her leave. "How rude."

* * *

They arrived at the island a couple of hours later and docked at the shore, the crew lowering the boarding ramp so everyone could get down.

Not too distant from the sea, once the beach ended and gave way to greener soil, was a small village. They counted a little more than a dozen houses, not counting the local inn, and there was almost no noise coming from it.

As she and her friends neared the village, Ruby's eyes wandered up, taking in the rising mountain behind it. She could vaguely make out a natural stone path leading up to the top, where there were more buildings, though those were clearly of Air Nomad construction. She could tell it even in spite of the distance and the overgrown foliage that must have spread through the Temple over the years.

Ruby and Jaune waved to Weiss, then moved through the village towards the stone path. The blond boy gave one look up the huge mountain and groaned aloud.

"Man…" he sighed. "I really wanna go with you, Ruby… But look at that! It's so tall!"

"I could carry you there," Ruby suggested, putting a hand on her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm… A jump _there_ , then a boost on _that_ rock… I can get us there in no time!"

Jaune gulped, remembering all the times Ruby had hoisted him around while airbending, and how sick he always was afterwards. "Actually, it doesn't look so tall anymore! Let's just walk and… appreciate the scenery! Hehe… heh…"

Ruby shrugged and began walking up the path, Jaune following suit. It was a steep climb, but not enough to make it strenuous. The Avatar drew her staff and held it by her side, its blade out and looking sharp. Whether that was because she was being cautious regarding any stray Grimm or some other reason, Jaune couldn't tell.

In silence, he wondered why Ruby was even bothering to visit the Temple. Yes, it was her people's, and maybe it would be nice for her to learn a little bit about the Air Nomads' other settlements that were spread around the globe… but that didn't sound good enough of a reason for it. If he were in her place, the last thing Jaune would want was to be reminded that all his people were dead.

Many minutes later, they arrived at the top. Ruby nodded and looked around in silent appreciation, while Jaune stood still for a moment, catching his breath.

"So," he said tiredly. "What now?"

"Let's look at the inside," Ruby suggested. "Looks like half the buildings are completely closed. Weird. Back home, we had no ceilings, so we could fly out anytime we wanted."

"Well, the Southern Air Temple was on the top of a spire bigger than even this mountain. It didn't rain there, did it?" Jaune questioned.

"Oh, right. I guess it would suck a lot if you were sleeping and suddenly water started to pour down on you," Ruby approached a building and pushed aside the vines covering the entrance, only to jump back and look down at her hands in disgust. "Eeew! Those are _soaked_! It does rain a lot up here!"

"Come on, Ruby," Jaune rolled his eyes and walked up to her. "It's just water!" He grabbed the vines and pulled them aside. Immediately, his face scrunched up, but he refused to let go, for his pride's sake.

Ruby laughed shortly at him, then stepped inside. Jaune followed in a heartbeat, shaking his hands like crazy, as if that could somehow remove the disgusting texture they now had.

While her friend worried about his hands, Ruby grabbed her scythe in both hands and walked through the huge building. It was nearly pitch black, only a few rays of light entering the place from between the vines at the entrance. Her eyes darted from one direction to another in quick succession, trying to make out any lurking Grimm before it was too late.

"It's so dark in here!" Jaune complained loudly. "Hey, Ruby, can you please learn to firebend all of a sudden and make a little light?"

"Shh! There might be Grimm around here!" Ruby turned and poked his leg with the blunt end of her scythe.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry," he whispered. "What about the firebending…?"

"Sorry, can't do. Just follow my lead."

"A-alright. Hopefully you'll see if any Grimm snatch me up," he gulped. "You do have that creepy Avatar sense sometimes. You could use that. Please?"

Ruby opened her mouth to respond, when a strange noise reached her ears. It was soft, but long, like something pressing down on something wet, then releasing it. Not something she expected from Grimm, but it still sent chills down her spine.

Coming to a halt, she bent her knees a little and tilted her head. "Did you hear that?"

"N-no," Jaune said, breathing down her neck fearfully. "G-Grimm?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure…" Ruby took a step back. "Alright. Here's what we're gonna do. You walk back, slowly, towards the entrance. I'll follow while keeping watch. If anything happens, I'll-"

Suddenly, something appeared right in front of them, a tall silhouette in the darkness. Ruby and Jaune opened their mouths and shrieked.

* * *

Weiss took a deep breath and raised her hand, then lowered it again, for what felt like the twentieth time. The messenger hawk she'd rented at the village stared at her sharply, as if accusing her of lingering for too long. Perhaps she should return it and get her money back.

No! She couldn't do that. She had been putting this off ever since leaving the South Pole, and now was her absolute last chance. Sure, it was still too late – her father would hardly be pleased learning of her arrival a mere week in advance – but it was the only option left to her.

Weiss gritted her teeth, then quickly deposited the letter on the bird's beak and ushered it off. The hawk circled in the sky a few times, then turned north and sped off.

"So that's done, finally," she sighed. "Probably will not do me any good, anyway."

She turned and faced the mountain behind the village, staring at the long path up to the Temple above. Just looking at it made her tired. Surely, Ruby wouldn't mind if she stayed behind, for once.

"Miss?" Weiss turned around to find an old lady looking at her with squinted eyes. "You wouldn't happen to be friends with the two younglings who traveled to the Temple, would you?"

"Actually, I am," Weiss said. "Why do you ask?"

"Well… The place is filled with Grimm," the old lady frowned. "The girl had a weapon on her, I know, but she was so small… And the boy… _Well_ …"

Weiss grinned. "Thank you for worrying, ma'am, but rest assured, they can protect themselves," she said. "Ruby a lot better, of course. She is the Avatar."

At that point of their journey, Weiss had stopped caring about divulging such information to strangers. They were far, far north, and practically all the world knew Ruby's likeness already. Besides, even if Weiss said nothing, Ruby had the unfortunate habit of blurting out her identity at the first opportunity.

Unfortunately, Weiss quickly came to regret that carefree approach, but not for the reasons one might expect. The old lady's kind expression turned sour in an instant, and she scoffed loudly.

"Ah, the Avatar!" She shook her head fervently. "She can have all the Grimm in the world, then, for all I care!"

"What – That's uncalled for!" Weiss exclaimed, her ire growing quickly at those words. "I'll have you know Ruby is a very kind person. You should be ashamed of speaking of her like that!"

The old lady scoffed again. "Do not lecture me, girl! I know exactly who the Avatar is," her eyes narrowed. "When the Grimm came fifteen years ago, my son raced up to the Temple to help the airbenders. He was friends with them, couldn't just stand by and watch, the young fool. He never came back," she pointed a finger at Weiss' face, almost hitting her in the nose. "And where was the Avatar then, huh?! Soon as she comes back down, you can tell her to get the hell out of our island. She's not welcome here anymore."

She turned around and stormed off with an astounding level of energy for someone her age. Weiss watched silently, shocked by her harsh words. Sure, she had heard speeches like that before – a little too often, unfortunately – but this one struck hard. She was glad Ruby hadn't been around to hear it, at least.

Weiss was snapped from her shock by two distant screams, coming from the top of the mountain. She turned around, immediately recognizing the noise, and ran towards the stone path, wondering just what misfortune had befallen her companions this day.

* * *

Jaune jumped and wrapped his arms around Ruby's neck, and she bolted out of the building, tearing through the vines covering the entrance. Neither stopped screaming, even as they entered broad daylight again.

"What was that?!" Jaune managed to ask between shrieks.

Ruby just shook her head and dropped him on his feet. She assumed a serious expression, not screaming anymore, and turned around, bringing her scythe up in front of her, pointed at the building.

They waited unmoving, the only noises breaking the silence being their own breathing and a faint rustling from behind the vines.

A twig snapped in two.

A bird squawked.

A boy with dark hair and pink eyes exited the building, carrying a teapot filled to the brim and a matching set of teacups in an ornate tray. "Greetings."

Jaune almost fell over, while Ruby just stared at the stranger, not knowing how to react to his unexpected appearance.

"You're… uh, not a Grimm," she said, suddenly feeling very foolish.

"Thank you," the boy smiled slightly. "My name is Ren. I'm sorry I startled you. Perhaps you'd accept a cup of tea as an apology?"

"Uh… Sure," Ruby looked back at Jaune, who was just as bewildered as her. "This is Jaune. I'm Ruby. Nice to meet you."

Ren nodded and sat down on the ground, apparently not caring about how dirty it was. His tunic was a light green, but the material looked familiar… Ruby's eyes widened a bit as she realized that was an Air Nomad tunic.

As a million different questions spawned in her mind, Ruby sat down too, careful not to dirty her cloak in the process. More hesitantly, Jaune did the same, if only to not be the odd one out.

"Ren…" Ruby spoke slowly. "You're not an-"

Suddenly, Weiss appeared, running from the stone path to them at top speed. She skidded to a halt beside them, wheezing exhaustedly. At first, she made a relieved expression when she saw her friends were unharmed, but that was quickly substituted by confusion for the same reason.

Her eyes darted from Ruby to Jaune to Ren. "W-what…? Who…?"

"I'm Ren. Nice to meet you." Ren waved with one hand while he filled four teacups with the other.

"W-Weiss…" She laid down beside Ruby, curling up next to the airbender.

"Jeez. How fast did you run?" Ruby patted her on the head with a mixture of admiration and pity.

Weiss groaned and waved Ren off as he offered her a cup. Realizing that she was in no fit state for drinking anything, he instead offered the cup to Ruby, who took it gingerly, eyes glued to the mysterious boy.

"You're the Avatar, aren't you?" Ren asked casually as he gave Jaune another cup.

"What… How did you know?" Ruby stared at him with wide eyes.

"I hear about you sometimes when I go down to the village. The new Avatar, a young girl with red hair…" He looked at her head and raised an eyebrow slightly. "Nobody ever mentions there's a lot more black than red, though."

"Hey, that is true," Jaune frowned. "How come nobody ever mentions how weird your hair is?" Earning a very Weiss-like glare from Ruby, he decided a correction was in order. "I meant to say unique. Unique, and very pretty."

"You also have the unmistakable look of an Air Nomad. The staff, the tunic, the posture…" Ren shrugged. "And since the Avatar is the only airbender left… It's not a hard connection to make."

Ruby gripped her teacup a little more tightly, her hopes squashed just moments after being born. She brought the tea to her mouth and drank silently, hoping that would hide her feelings.

The action had a much greater effect than that, though. The taste was unbelievably good, and her nose was filled with the sweetest aroma she had ever smelled in her life. Warmth spread through her body, as if a floodgate had opened somewhere deep inside her. Every part of her felt alive.

"Mm. This is good!" Jaune said happily as he took a sip too. "Right, Ruby?"

The redhead couldn't even manage a response other than a goofy smile.

"I brewed this tea from an herb I found in the Air Nomads' living quarters. According to my research, they drank it before meditation. Supposedly, the tea centers the energy of your very soul – your _spirit_ , so to speak," Ren nodded at Ruby. "The effect is even greater on benders. As for the Avatar…"

"Wow. Ruby must be in another world right now, then," Jaune chuckled a little. Seeing that his friend wouldn't be coming down from her high for quite a while, and Weiss was still half-unconscious, he took it upon himself to chat with this kind stranger. "So. Ren," he frowned. "Your name sounds familiar, for some reason…"

Ren filled a teacup for himself and took a drink. After a few seconds of enjoying the tea's effect, he looked at Jaune again. "Nora?"

"Yeah, that's it! The crazy earthbender girl from Patch!" Jaune exclaimed. "Wait. How did you know?"

"We're very good friends, and Nora has a habit of telling strangers about me. She probably wants me to come back home," he shook his head in amusement. "I can't do that yet, though. I came here to explore the Temple – travelled all the way through the Earth Kingdom, just like you guys – and I'm still not done. There's one place I just can't get into…"

Ruby exhaled loudly and blinked. Her eyes gazed at everything around her sharply before settling on Ren. "What, is it somewhere too high for you to climb? Maybe I could help."

"No. It's a room deep inside the main temple, locked behind a strange door… I'm beginning to think it can only be opened by an airbender, or several at once," Ren took a sip of his tea. "But I wouldn't want to take any of your time. I'm sure you have more important things to do than help me."

"Well, we are supposed to be going to the North Pole… But Weiss is kind of dying right now," Ruby shrugged. "I can spare a couple hours. Show me the way."

Ren smiled gratefully, then stood up and gestured at one of the bigger buildings nearby.

"I'll stay behind, if you don't mind," Jaune said. "Someone's gotta make sure Weiss doesn't pass out… or away…"

Ruby gave him a thumbs up, then walked away, Ren following close behind.

* * *

"So, there are no Grimm around here anymore, right? You took care of them?" Ruby asked as they entered the main temple. Unlike most of the other buildings, this one did not have ceiling, so they could see where they were going because of the sunlight that poured in from above.

"Yes, we shouldn't be bothered, unless one chooses this moment to reform again," Ren said. "The door's this way." He walked past her, heading towards a stairway going downward.

Ruby went down the steps behind him, examining her surroundings in quiet wonder. She was a little surprised by how similar the architecture was to the Southern Temple's. Even separated by a whole continent, and some more ocean to boot, it was obvious the two places were a matching set. She wondered if the Eastern and Western Temples were the same way.

As they descended into an underground passage and made their way through spacious stone hallways – they were probably inside the mountain now – Ruby's thoughts wandered away from where she was, to the boy accompanying her.

Ren was a mystery. He was well-spoken, but not overly so. There was a trained quality to his eyes, as if they had seen far more than was expected of someone his age. And yet there was also something else, hidden beneath that silent composure of his… a hunger for discovery, the constant desire for that moment of learning something completely unexpected, which Ruby always wore on the surface.

Maybe his clothes weren't a coincidence, after all.

"Ren, you're not an Air Nomad, are you?" Ruby asked quietly. She was not only reluctant about opening old wounds, but also afraid of possibly offending him. "You wear the tunic, but it doesn't make you one. Not that I have anything against it. I'm just curious."

Ren looked back at her over his shoulder. "Don't worry. I'm not trying to impersonate one of your people, Ruby. That would be very disrespectful," he said. "My parents used to tell me stories about all the peoples in the world. Every one of them, even the Fire Nation, got their fair treatment. But the Air Nomads were always my favorites. I think I was drawn to their endless quest for knowledge; how they were separate from the rest of the world, yet at the same time, so very connected to it."

"Oh. You know a lot about the Air Nomads," Ruby rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously. "A little more than me, maybe…" She added under her breath.

"They were what inspired me to travel the world. I've visited the Eastern and Western Temples already. This is my last stop," he smiled. "I would go to the Southern one too, but I hear that one's a little harder to reach."

"Yeah, better to stay more grounded," Ruby grinned. "Maybe I can give you a lift there, once I'm done with this whole Fire Nation mess."

"I'll look forward to it."

A couple minutes later, they turned a corner and reached a new hallway. The ceiling was curved upwards, sustained by a dozen massive stone pillars. To either side of them, there was emptiness. Ruby looked over the edge and saw the ocean.

"Where are we?" she asked, trying to orientate herself in the new environment, and failing badly. Her mind was just a jumbled mess.

"I believe this is the backside of the mountain. It's very narrow, which is why we can see the ocean from here," Ren said. "And there's the door."

Just a few paces in front of them was huge metal double door, golden in appearance, though Ruby doubted it was actually constructed of such a luxurious material. The Air Nomads were not often approving of that kind of glamour. The metal prodded out at places, making seemingly random waves.

Ruby took a step back and examined the door again. After a few seconds, she realized her analysis had been wrong. Nothing about the door was random. He metal had been woven carefully to represent the form of a five-headed dragon, each of its heads pointed in a different cardinal direction, and one jutting out from the center.

"Neat!" she exclaimed, fascinated by the design. "I guess just pushing it didn't work, right?"

"Correct," Ren nodded. "Was there anything similar in the Southern Temple, perhaps?"

"I think I would have found it if it existed," Ruby frowned. "Hmm… The mouths are open… Maybe that's the key? Some kind of airbending mechanism that'll open the door?"

Yes, that could work. Five canals of air directed at each of the mouths, to push against whatever was inside them. It would require some concentration, but it wasn't too complicated of a solution. Any halfway-decent airbender could manage. The door must have been made to keep people from the other nations out, Ruby realized – and that only made her more excited to see what was inside.

She brought her hands together, gathering the air around her between them to form a sphere that spun quickly on itself. Then, she flicked her wrists, and the air separated into five narrow funnels that entered each of the dragon's heads. A few seconds passed, then something clicked inside the door, and it opened inwards slowly…

Ruby and Ren glanced at each other briefly, then stepped through the huge doorway. What they found was a round chamber that rose higher and higher, until it met with the very top of the mountain with an unblocked view of the sky. Lining the stone walls of the cavern were countless rows of Avatar statues.

"Well, that's disappointing," Ruby crossed her arms. "There's something like this in the Southern Temple, but it's not locked by a crazy door."

"I suppose it's not that exciting," Ren nodded mutely. "But isn't it interesting how reverent the Nomads were of the Avatar? Particularly the Cycle. As far as I know, there aren't any places like this in the Earth Kingdom or the Water Tribes."

"The Fire Nation's got some islands dedicated to it," Ruby said, drawing a bit of knowledge unwittingly from Ozpin. "At least they have that going for them!"

She took another long look at the statues, but her mind wasn't on them anymore. Slowly, a frown formed on her forehead. No scorch marks; no sign of human battles. Utterly unlike the Southern Temple.

"Weird," she muttered. "How did the Fire Nation attack here? Did they sneak in or something?"

Ren turned to look at her, confusion evident on his face. "The Fire Nation never attacked the Northern Nomads. They were wiped out by the Grimm overnight," he said. "…Just like the Eastern and Western Nomads."

"What…? But…" Ruby leaned on a statue. She felt like the world had suddenly started spinning around her. "But that's not what happened. The Fire Nation killed them. I know it."

"I'm sorry, but I don't think that's true. Maybe that's what happened where you're from – I wouldn't doubt your account, but…" Ren gestured at her sympathetically. "I've visited the other Temples. The signs were clear, and they all pointed towards the Grimm. The Fire Nation never set a foot in any of them."

Ruby slid down to the ground slowly, pressing her back against one of her ancestors. Everything made a lot more sense now. People had been so vicious against her, claiming she had abandoned her people when the Grimm came… Even with the Fire Nation warring against their country, the Earth Kingdom commoners had never accused them of killing the Air Nomads…

"They still killed the Southern Nomads," Ren pointed out, as if he could read her thoughts. "And they've invaded the Earth Kingdom unprovoked. They're far from being saints."

"And the Fire Lord killed Avatar Ozpin…" Ruby nodded mutely, then raised her head in alarm. "But… Then how did the Grimm know to attack just after that happened?!"

"That's what they do," Ren sighed. "Prey on people's moments of weakness. What's a better opportunity than when the old Avatar is dead and the new one isn't even a month old yet?"

Ruby looked down at her lap, struck by the harsh reality of her existence once again. Had it been pure luck that her mother had escaped the Fire Nation's rampage with her? Had they not survived, what would have become of the Avatar?

It was hard to believe in fate when every one of her people was dead. If it existed, whoever controlled it was one cruel trickster.

"Come on, Ruby," Ren crouched next to her, laying a hand on her shoulder. "Let's get out of here. There's nothing more to see."

She agreed with a wordless sound, then got up and shuffled out of the chamber. Ren went to follow her, but stopped briefly before the doorway…

He cast a glance over his shoulder. There was something… sinister, about the chamber. The sun was setting above it, yet the darkness it brought did not seem natural. It almost felt like the shadows were stretching towards him like a living, breathing force…

Ren shook his head and turned away, chalking the feeling up to the Temple's tragic history.

* * *

An hour later, Ruby and her friends were back on the island's shore, preparing for the last stretch of their journey to the North Pole while bidding farewell to Ren. The young explorer thanked Ruby for her help, then wished for them to meet again and left on his own smaller ship.

"Cool guy. And he's almost an Air Nomad, really," Jaune mumbled by Ruby's side as they watched him sail away. "But that's just my opinion. I don't know what _you_ think…"

Ruby gave him an odd look. "Jaune, are you trying to play matchmaker?" she asked, not sure whether to be amused or offended.

"N-No! That would be _very_ insensitive!" He took a step back. "What an imagination you have, Ruby! Wow! The things you come up with it! …Bye!" He slipped away suddenly, disappearing inside the ship.

Ruby rolled her eyes, then noticed Weiss looking down at her from the ship's deck. "We're ready to sail, Ruby," the princess said. "Let's get to the North Pole already, shall we?"

The Avatar nodded. She cast a final look at the distant Temple, eyes wavering with emotion, then turned and climbed up to the ship.

* * *

Roman lifted his pen momentously, the tip of his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth. His eyes sparkled as he examined the parchment laid in front of him. The Fire Lord, declaring a full-out invasion, and giving him the rains to steer it however necessary. Oh, the glory! The riches!

Slowly, he started to lower the pen…

" _TORCHWICK_!" The door of his office slammed against the wall, and Taiyang Xiao-Long stormed inside his room. If his entrance wasn't indication enough of his anger, his fists and the look in his eyes certainly helped.

"Holy-!" Roman jumped up, looking at the mess that had been made of his desk. The ink had flown everywhere, only narrowly missing the important documents he had been about to sign. "Look at what you've done, you oversized lemur-buffoon! You're gonna regret-"

Taiyang slammed a hand down on his desk, spilling even more ink. "Tell me what you've done to my daughter."

Roman immediately opened his mouth to fire off a disparaged insult or something along those lines, but something about the man's eyes… Those were not the eyes of the Taiyang he knew, that shameful, pathetic failure of a man. Those were the eyes that had once belonged to the most feared General in the world.

"I have no clue. Honest," Roman raised his hands peacefully. "Could you elaborate?"

Taiyang scanned him up and down for a long while, no doubt trying to discern whether he was telling the truth. Roman did his best to stay still, even as his lips begged for him to smile at his own deviousness.

"We were moving away from Atlas, when suddenly our ship was brought to a halt by a couple of waterbenders. Experts, I'd say. Froze a huge chunk of water up in mere seconds," Taiyang leaned closer. "You wouldn't happen to know any _mercenaries_ with that skillset, would you?"

"Sorry, can't say I do," Roman shrugged. "There's a simple answer, you know. The Water Tribe's had enough of us and, for once, the savages made a smart move by striking fast, taking out the princess. Of course, they didn't know she was a traitor, but I digress. Let's look past that for now, shall we?"

Roman grabbed the Fire Lord's parchment and handed it to Taiyang. The ex-General read it from top to bottom thrice, as if he couldn't believe its contents.

"An invasion. Raven cannot be serious. I never thought…" Taiyang shot him a wary glance, catching himself before he talked too much. "Why would you show me this? Am I not a _traitor_ too?"

"As I said, we can look past that. You want your daughter back, right? And I want to invade and capture that frozen wasteland of a city ," Roman smiled. "The way I see it, we share a common enemy. How about we work together, for now? Depending on how things go, I might just let it slide that your daughter sabotaged my efforts of capturing the Avatar _twice_ – not to mention that little village she liberated, for whatever reason…"

Taiyang crossed his arms. Roman waited, appearing patient on the outside, while inside he was bellowing in triumph.

"…Fine," Taiyang said. "But as soon as I have her back, I'm done. Don't expect me to help you with dirty job."

"Of course. She _is_ your whole world," Roman chuckled. "Welcome back to the army, General."


	17. Heiresses of the Frost

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Seventeen: Heiresses of the Frost**

* * *

 Ruby woke in her bed to someone shaking her by the shoulder. Opening her eyes, she saw Jaune standing beside her, holding a candle close to his face. He had an eager expression on his face, with a bit of nervousness mixed in, though that wasn't an uncommon sight – even after he got over his famous seasickness.

He shook her again. "We're here," Jaune said. "Minutes from docking in the North Pole."

Ruby sat up hurriedly, rubbing her eyes to rid herself of her remaining sleepiness. Her heart beat excitedly in her chest as a smile formed uninvited on her lips. "Yes! Finally!"

She jumped off her bed, sweeping up her staff and cloak in one swing of her right arm, then marched out of her room. Jaune followed after her, struggling to catch up.

They emerged on the deck as Ruby wrapped her cloak around her neck. Weiss was standing close to the prow, eyes fixed on the horizon. Her face was pale – paler than usual – and she was shifting her weight between her feet constantly. It was unlike anything Ruby had ever seen of the princess.

"Home sweet home, eh?" Ruby asked as she stopped beside Weiss, in an attempt to cheer her up.

"Hmm," Weiss glanced at her for a second or two. "Do you _have_ to wear that cloak?"

The question snapped at Ruby like a whip, sudden and harsh. Even in their early days, Weiss hadn't addressed her this way. She frowned, fingers hovering hesitantly in front of the knot that tied her cloak. "If that's what you want…"

Weiss blinked, then looked at her again as if noticing her for the first time. "Oh," her lips parted slightly. "Apologies. That was insensitive. You can keep it on, if you so desire."

Ruby nodded slowly, taking a few steps away. She turned around and locked eyes with Jaune, who appeared to be just as confused. After a few moments, he shrugged and smiled shakily. "She must be nervous about coming home."

"Yeah. Must be," Ruby agreed mutely, glancing at Weiss in worry, before turning her eyes to the horizon.

In the distance, a mass of ice became visible, uniform shapes rising from the ocean to form a wall that looked even taller than the ones she had seen at Atlas. Carved in the ice was the symbol of the Water Tribe: a wave on the ocean.

When the ship got close to the wall, a number of guards that were patrolling back and forth on top of it came to a halt and started an elaborate set of waterbending moves, as if they were performing some kind of group dance. Huge sections of the wall slid down and sank below the ocean's surface, leaving in front of the ship a hole resembling a gate.

"Wow," Ruby whistled. "That was neat."

" _That_ was neat? What do you think of this city, then?" Jaune asked as he gawked at what appeared in front of them. Buildings upon buildings rose high up the sky, all made of rigid ice. The streets were so neatly built, with water flowing between walkways only broken by the occasional bridge, it was difficult to believe they had been constructed by human hands.

"Man, how did they make all of this?" Ruby shook her head in wonder. "Am I gonna learn how to do this kind of stuff?"

"Let's hope so. That would be _seriously_ awesome," Jaune said.

Finally, they stopped at a dock, coming to a halt beside dozens of similar ships. Captain Port exited his cabin and directed his crew to lower the boarding ramp. As soon as they were done, Ruby made a move to run down to the city, but Weiss' hand closed around her arm with uncharacteristic force.

" _Wait_ ," Weiss hissed. She wasn't angry, but worried, or so Ruby assumed. "Stay near me, okay? And try some restraint, please. You need to make a good impression."

"Alright," Ruby gulped. "Maybe I _should_ take off my cloak…"

"No," the princess muttered, her grip softening a bit. "I know how important it is to you. If they have some problem with it… Well, that is one thing I won't stand for."

Ruby looked at her in confusion. "Who's _they_?"

Weiss did not give her an answer, and just lead her down the ramp. Ruby almost slipped when her boots came into contact with the street's icy floor, but Weiss held her up. Jaune wasn't so fortunate, letting out a pained yell when he fell hard on his bum. "Thanks for the warning, Weiss." He glared at the princess, but she did a remarkable job of pretending he didn't exist.

Once he got back up, the three of them walked a few steps forward, but it wasn't long before a group of guards stood in their way, wielding lances or swords, or waterbending preemptively. Suddenly, sharp steel was being pointed their way from several directions. Ruby and Jaune looked around in distress, while Weiss let go of the Avatar and tensed up.

A loud set of footsteps came their way, and a few of the guards stepped aside to let a woman stride past them. Ruby had to look twice to make sure she wasn't having some kind of hallucination. The woman was the spitting image of Weiss, with white hair and skin as pale as snow, except she was a head taller and had no scar on her left eye.

"Weiss," the woman spoke in a tone that was all business, her eyes boring heavily on the princess. "You've arrived. A tad earlier than expected."

"Winter," Weiss said quietly, bowing her head slightly. "It's… good to see you again."

Winter did not acknowledge that, her eyes moving over to Ruby, taking her in, head to toe. "And this is the Avatar?"

Ruby raised her hand in a friendly greeting. "Hiya! That's right. I'm Ruby!" Weiss elbowed her, and Ruby bowed several times in quick succession. "I mean… It is an honor to meet you. I am, indeed, the Avatar! Uh… I hope to be… of service… Wait, I mean… To be a good…" She froze up, mouth wide open, not knowing how to finish that sentence.

Winter did not appear impressed at all. "I see. Come with me," she ordered. "Weiss. Father expects you to present yourself to him without delay. You have much to talk about."

Weiss nodded, her lips forming a straight line. Ruby's eyes lit up as she finally began to understand what was happening. Weiss had mentioned a sister a couple times during their travels, and now here she was, in the flesh!

Jaune gulped nervously and raised a hand. "Uhm… What should I do?" he asked.

Winter stared at him as he were a creature from another world. "And this one is…?"

"Oh, that's… that's Jaune," Weiss explained, flustered. "He's a friend."

"A friend," Winter repeated dryly. "…Do as you please. _Within_ the boundaries of reason." She turned around and gestured over her shoulder, then marched away, accompanied by some of the guards.

Ruby glanced worriedly at Weiss, noticing for the first time that the princess was outright trembling. She searched for something to say, something comforting, maybe some piece of knowledge from her past lives, but nothing came to mind.

Defeated and with a sense of dread, Ruby turned and walked away, following Winter in complete silence.

* * *

 Contrary to what Ruby had expected, the streets in the North Pole were all but empty. Crowds gathered together; families watched from their windows; a diver or two poked their heads above the water's surface and followed them. It was the exact opposite of the South Pole, where there had been preciously few people.

Yet that wasn't the only way the two Poles differed. As she followed Winter, Ruby began to notice that, while there were _a lot_ of people watching them, no one let out as much as a peep. They were curious, that was obvious enough, but it was like _something_ was holding them back from anything more than that. It was a little… unnerving, she thought.

It didn't take long for them to reach their destination. Winter stopped before a building that resembled a barracks and gestured to the door without saying a word. Ruby lingered for a moment, not sure what to do, before entering the building. Behind her, Winter signaled for the guards to stay before entering too.

The inside of the barracks was spacious, nothing more than a table and a few chairs there. There was a set of stairs that led up to a higher floor, which Ruby assumed would be where business was actually conducted.

Winter stepped past her and gestured at a chair. "Sit."

Ruby obeyed without objection, her eyes exploring every inch of the room restlessly. She wasn't scared, not really, but something about Winter's demeanor… well, if the choice were presented to her, she'd rather _not_ be alone with that woman.

"Be at ease," Winter said as she took a seat at the other side of the table. She sounded like a general talking to a subordinate, something Ruby definitely wasn't used to, much less comfortable with. "I want to ask you a few questions. Is that fine with you, Avatar?"

"Uh, yeah," Ruby squirmed in her seat. "You can call me by my name… or not… Your choice."

"I'll keep that in mind," Winter nodded. "How old are you?"

"Fifteen. Maybe a little more? I was frozen in ice for a while, I don't know how long that was…"

"Where were you born?" Winter leaned forward a little, resting her hands on the table. "Do you have any living relatives?"

"Southern Air Temple. My mom died when I was ten," Ruby hesitated. "I never met my dad, though."

"Alright. You're doing well," the northern princess smiled a little, the first real sign of emotion Ruby saw on her. "When you did you first airbend? What about the other elements?"

Ruby let out a huge breath, slumping a little on her chair. These questions were far easier than she had expected. She barely had to think.

"I've been airbending since I was a baby, I think. Mom used to say I was a prodigy," she said. "About the others… Well, I used to bend them very weakly sometimes. That's part of how Mom pieced together I was the Avatar. But it got harder to do that as I grew older. Nowadays I can waterbend just fine, though. Weiss taught me a lot."

Winter was silent for a moment, a frown appearing on her forehead. The temperature in the room seemed to drop rapidly. Ruby wondered if she had said something wrong and was about to say something aloud, when Winter looked back at her, her expression going back to that previous coolness.

"And why did it take you so long to show yourself?" Winter asked slowly. "If your mother knew you were the Avatar, and as you said, she died when you were ten… That is _at least_ five years you spent doing…?"

Ruby flinched at the sudden change in the conversation. "I… I don't know. I was scared. Being the Avatar's not easy…" she said meekly. "But I did leave the Temple eventually. Thing is, there was a terrible storm, and I fell on the ocean…"

"And froze yourself in instinct," Winter finished for her. "Well, I suppose worse could have happened. You could have died; or waited until you were _twenty_ to take action."

Ruby didn't speak for a few seconds, just staring at the princess in silence. A few months before, she would have felt guilty, been shocked by the truth in Winter's words.

But she had been hearing the same thing over and over again for a long time now, and yes, she felt guilty. Yes, she knew she wasn't as good as people hoped her to be. She couldn't turn her back on those feelings.

But she _could_ invite in a new one.

"Well, it's not my fault all of my people were killed and I was left with almost no one to guide me through being the freaking _Avatar_!" She got up, fists clenched at her side, silver eyes gleaming slightly. "How about _you_ try and fill my place, huh? Let's see how far you get before you break down!"

She heard a loud noise outside, like a raging torrent meeting with an unbreakable object, and on the corner of her vision, saw water splashing against the windows of the barracks. Ruby gasped and opened her hands, letting go of the familiar feeling that came with waterbending.

A hand closed around her wrist, and the next thing she knew, she was sitting on her chair again, Winter's face hovering a finger's width always from hers. "Keep your temper in check," she hissed. "I've seen powerful people be punished _greatly_ for lesser outbursts than that."

"…What?" Ruby asked lethargically.

"Beneath this city lies a series of underwater caverns. In these caverns live ancient and fearsome Grimm the likes of which not even the most experienced of Avatars could hope to kill," Winter said. "Do I need to explain to you what happens when Grimm sense negative emotions such as that anger you so carelessly demonstrated?"

They stared at each other for a long while, before Ruby finally broke eye contact, her sight falling shamefully on her own lap. To her surprise, not long after that, she felt a hand falling softly on her shoulder.

"I apologize for being harsh. It's evident you weren't told of the nature of this city," Winter sighed. "As expected, of course. I cannot blame Weiss."

Ruby looked up and began to formulate a question, but before she could make a sound, Winter dismissed her with a simple gesture, as if she had somehow predicted where their conversation would have gone next.

"Nevertheless," Winter said. "You needn't worry yourself too much about that. Much of your waterbending training will be dealing with the exact issue of your emotions, and your control over them."

"Ah!" Ruby's eyes lit up. "Yes! I had almost forgotten about learning waterbending!"

"Is that not why you traveled all the way here?" Winter asked in wonder. "You are certainly… unique."

"That sounds like how Weiss would describe me, if she were feeling gentle," Ruby mused. "When do I get to meet my new master?"

Winter raised an eyebrow at her. "Why do you think I asked you all those questions? A master will not accept just any pupil."

Ruby looked her up and down, her mind quickly catching up to what her ears had just heard.

"My expectations are high," Winter said. "Your status as Avatar will afford you no reprieve or special treatment. Is that understood?"

"Y-yes!" Ruby stood up, clasping her hands near her chest. "I won't disappoint you, Winter! I mean, master! Teacher! _Master-teacher Winter_!"

Winter raised a hand to her chin, deep in thought. "Yes, I do hope so…"

* * *

 For once, Weiss was glad everyone was so interested in Ruby. The lack of people following her every step made her return to her hometown much easier. Not by much, though – she couldn't shake the dread weighing down her shoulders, that sensation of inevitable doom that was making it so difficult for her to breathe.

It was all a big mistake, leaving the South Pole, she realized. She had had no obligation to accompany Ruby on her journey. Just sending her off with her ship and a sizeable crew would have sufficed. But alas, years of boredom and cynical waiting had paved way for arrogance, and she'd not given a second thought to her decision until it was far too late.

And now she was standing before the steps of her home tribe's public government hall, out in the open for all to the see, with her father looking down on her silently, seated on his imposing throne. He was a few inches shorter than she remembered, and some gray hairs were starting to show amidst the white. His advisors lined up on both sides of the throne, as silent as him, though unlike him, they did not make an effort to hide their disapproval.

She took a deep breath, then climbed up the icy steps slowly, one by one, feeling like each got harder to reach than the last. Finally, she stopped before the throne and bowed her head. "Father."

He stared for a long while, so long, in fact, that she started to fear she had spoken too softly for him to hear. Only when she looked up hesitantly, eyes not quite meeting his, did he speak.

"Weiss. It's been a long time," Jacques Schnee said. It was difficult to tell whether there was any sentimentality in his voice. At least in that, he hadn't changed. "You are like a reflection of your mother. More so than your sister, I dare say."

"Oh," Weiss mouthed, then caught herself and bowed again. "Thank you. I'm… happy to hear that."

"As you should." There was no ambiguity to this voice anymore. He had slipped into a tone she had been accustomed to hearing during her childhood - The chieftain's voice, the leader's. "You explained your unexpected – and unauthorized – return in your recent letter, but I'd like if you did so again in person. After all, you can only fit so much into a piece of paper. I'm sure you left out many _important_ details."

Weiss nodded slowly, biting her lip as she went over what to say. She had had weeks to construct the perfect tale to tell her father, something that would appease his thorough needs and, at the same time, paint a better picture of her. Yet now it felt like nothing would be good enough.

"Alright," she swallowed dry. "I suppose I should start from the beginning. One day, one of the Southern Water Tribe's residents, a boy my age named Jaune, was out fishing, as he ought to feed the village. He came across Ruby – the Avatar, that is – frozen in ice. He took her back to the village, and that was when I met her, though I did not immediately realize who she was. Shortly after, a Fire Nation ship appeared, and in it was Yang Xiao-Long…"

Weiss continued to talk, reciting from memory nearly every step of their journey – from their brief stop at the Southern Air Temple, to their slow trek up the Earth Kingdom, the troubles they'd faced from the Grimm and the Fire Nation…

As she got farther through her story, her voice grew more confident, and she stopped feeling so vulnerable before the assembly of eyes fixed on her. Before she could even realize it, she was smiling, the not-so-distant memories sparkling a warm feeling inside of her.

She thought, maybe, just maybe, if she could make them see how she felt, if she could make her words truly _reach_ them… Maybe they would understand that having an open heart was not nearly as bad as they thought.

"Enough."

She was cut short by her father's booming voice just as she got to their arrival at Haven. He rubbed his forehead briefly, a momentary weakness showing, before sitting straight on his throne again.

"I believe we've heard enough," Jacques said. "I acknowledge you've faced many perils to protect the Avatar. What I would like to understand is _why_."

"…Why?" Weiss repeated, lost for words for a moment. "She's… the Avatar. The world's only hope against the Grimm – and the Fire Nation, to boot. Do you understand how close they are to ruling the Earth Kingdom? The fate of an entire continent hangs on the balance as we speak. And if it should fall the wrong way, _we_ will become their next target."

"Yes, I _understand_ that. I _am_ the chieftain of the Northern Tribe. Do not think for a second that your short endeavor has made you any wiser than I, daughter." His eyes cut at her like razors. "That is not what I asked. I asked… why _you_?"

Weiss looked away, all the boldness she'd gathered withering away in a heartbeat, insecurity and helplessness settling in just as fast.

"Because… I was arrogant. I believed Ruby needed my help, specifically," she said slowly. "And, while I had many opportunities to turn back… she's my friend. The closest one I've ever had," her voice faded into a whisper. "I couldn't abandon her like that."

She waited in silence, waiting at any second for him to shout at her, or slap her, or order her imprisoned. What came next, however, was somehow much worse.

"I see. Eight years of banishment did not teach you anything, after all. You are still that same girl that wailed at my feet as you brought ruin upon this whole city," he stood up. "I am so cruel as to banish you again when the world is on the brink of collapse. You are to remain in your old quarters, to leave only at my discretion. You won't practice any waterbending. And you will _not_ talk to the Avatar ever again," he sat down. "Now leave my sight."

Weiss's hands curled into fists, her fingernails cutting into her palms. She bit her tongue in an effort to keep herself from crying, even as her eyes misted and began to sting. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of breaking down in front of him. At least in that way, she could be strong.

She turned around and took one step down, only to see a few familiar faces looking up at her. Some city folk she remembered from her childhood. A particular blue-haired boy staring in wonder. Winter, looking grim, but otherwise keeping her emotions concealed in the presence of their father. Jaune, a frown on his forehead, raising and lowering his foot, as if he were about to reach for her in sympathy.

And Ruby, unusually silent, her face carrying so many emotions, it was impossible to pinpoint exactly what she was feeling.

Weiss all but ran down the remaining steps, nearly slipping in the process, and didn't slow down even long after leaving their vision.

* * *

 An eternity seemed to pass after Weiss' sudden retreat. None of the chieftain's advisors dared make a sound before he did. Winter behaved similarly, though there was a hint of something more than apprehension in the way she stared at her father.

Ruby and Jaune looked at each other from a distance. They were both feeling quite the same way, and they could see that reflected in each other's faces. But the situation had arisen so quickly, neither knew what to say – if there even _was_ something to say.

Finally, chieftain Jacques stood from his throne and bowed slightly. "Avatar Ruby. It is an honor to meet you."

A quiet rage began to boil inside Ruby. How could he sound so calm after what had just happened? Did he truly feel so little about his own daughter? Oh, she had _so much_ to say to him… but instead of doing that, Ruby crossed her hands behind her back and smiled as widely as she could manage, knowing that if she let her emotions show right now, things would only turn worse.

"I can say the same, Your… Majesty?" Ruby replied hesitantly. "Wait. That's not right."

"Indeed, but I understand your confusion. In the North Pole, we have no kings – only chieftains." He gestured towards Winter. "Even the title of princess is only that – a title. Here, the people choose their rulers, though those tend to come from the great bloodlines - such as mine."

"Neat," Ruby said quietly.

The chieftain's gaze lingered on her for a while more before turning to Winter. "I presume you have already filled in our guest on the matter of her apprenticeship?"

"Correct," Winter said. "As Commander of the Northern Guard and Grandmaster of the Waterbending Academy, the duty of teaching her falls to me. I will do everything in my power to have the Avatar reach her fullest potential."

"I am pleased to hear you understand the weight of your task." He nodded, then looked at Ruby again. "Keep in mind, Avatar, that we do not always treat these matters with such levity. To be taught in the ways of waterbending by a Grandmaster is a gift rarely bestowed on one born here. As for an outsider like you… it's unprecedented. Even your past lives had to work their way up from the very bottom," he paused. "But you are a case unlike any before. The fate of the whole world rests on your hands. As such, it would be foolish of us to deny you the best training at our disposal, just to cling onto old traditions."

Ruby had thought Weiss had been difficult to understand sometimes, yet now she realized how wrong that perception had been. In the art of long words and dire speeches, the father was much more versed than the daughter. But even so, she understood his meaning, and though she already didn't like him very much, she couldn't disagree with him.

"Thank you, chieftain," she said seriously as she bowed. "I will not disappoint you."

* * *

 With their meeting with the chieftain over, Winter immediately took Ruby to the Waterbending Academy, without even bothering to ask what she wanted. Ruby thought it was a little rude, especially coming from a princess, but she didn't want to upset Winter by pointing that out. If she was patient, she might just find out what was going on with Weiss' family.

The Waterbending Academy was a vast complex of buildings erected from the ice of the North Pole, surrounded by training grounds divided into various sectors. Everywhere Ruby looked, she could spot at least a few waterbenders teaching, learning and practicing.

"Those are the public training grounds. Normally, you'd start from the furthest division from the Central Hall and earn your way closer, until a Grandmaster determined you worthy of entering it. There, you would put the finishing touches on your waterbending and, perhaps, become a Grandmaster yourself," Winter explained. "The process can take decades. Some benders have trained all their lives and never entered the Hall, and not for a lack of talent or effort."

"Wow. Sounds tough," Ruby said. "Wait… _You_ are a Grandmaster. And you're not that old, are you? I mean, you look pretty young!"

Winter cast her a sideways look. "Flattery will get you nowhere," she paused. "But, yes. I am the youngest Grandmaster in recorded history, at twenty-four… _and_ I received the title three years ago."

Ruby nodded and looked away to hide a knowing smile. The sisters were not so different, after all.

"Be careful. The steps are slippery," Winter advised as they arrived before the Central Hall. She climbed the half dozen steps to it with practiced grace, while Ruby struggled not to slip and break a bone.

When they entered the building, Ruby was surprised to see that it was not as big as it looked from the outside. She had expected rooms upon rooms filled with different training equipment, precious scrolls hanging on the walls, and old Water Tribe artifacts. What she found was a single large empty room with a natural pool of water in the middle of it.

"Huh," she muttered. "I guess I got used to the way things are in the Earth Kingdom. But you guys are kinda like the Air Nomads. Not really attached to physical stuff."

"Oh, no. We are, trust me," Winter refuted. "But this is the way I choose to train my pupils. One at a time. No unnecessary distractions. Just us and a deep well to draw upon."

Ruby nodded in approval. That sounded like a good way to teach someone, and it wasn't too different from how she had been taught before by her mother and Weiss.

"So," Winter gestured at her. "Show me your stance."

* * *

 "…Well," Winter looked down at the downed Ruby, her expression unreadable. "I have seen worse displays of waterbending before… Once or twice."

Ruby jumped back to her feet and rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously. She had thought she had been a decent waterbender, at least, but Winter had defeated her with no apparent effort. Not to mention the dozens of flaws in her forms the princess hadn't hesitated to point out.

"Uhm… Maybe I'm just tired?" Ruby suggested embarrassedly. "And it's been weeks since I last practiced with Weiss, so I'm kinda out of practice too."

Winter crossed her arms. "Tell me, what did my sister teach you?"

"Sheesh. I don't remember off the top of my head. All the basics, like how to call on the water and keep a hold of it. How to shape it…" Ruby frowned. "Uh… And some combat forms, I guess. The Water Whip, the Octopus Form, the Imprisonment Bubble…"

"The Imprisonment _What_?"

"She forgot the real name of that technique, so she made another one up."

Winter stared at her for a while, then shook her head. "Fine. It's of no consequence, I suppose. Please demonstrate the Water Whip."

Ruby summoned a string of water to her side and gathered it around her right hand. She concentrated for a few seconds, the tip of her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth, then jumped and swung with her arm. The string of water extended in front of her until it was straight, at which point it turned almost solid and made a loud whipping noise.

"That was… acceptable," Winter tilted her head, deep in thought. "But you shouldn't jump like that."

"Huh? Why not? Jumping helps me. I feel more alive, you know, so the whip works better," Ruby said sheepishly. "Trust me, you don't wanna see what happens when I don't jump. It's a complete mess."

"Well, you will have to learn to work around that," Winter admonished. "For the past half hour, you have shown me dozens of waterbending moves, and while you managed to execute them, there were irregularities in all of them. _Serious_ irregularities."

"Okay," Ruby mumbled. "But I didn't fail, did I?"

Winter opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again. She stared at Ruby as if she were some kind of foreign puzzle, with no apparent rhyme or reason to guide her to completion.

"We'll resume your training tomorrow," Winter said finally. "Allow me to show you to your living quarters."

* * *

 The house Ruby was given was modest, no bigger than any of the other residences she had seen in the city, but it was comfortable nonetheless, with all the commodities she could want inside it. She was surprised by how warm it was in spite of being made of ice – she guessed the waterbenders really knew their stuff when it came to building their homes.

Jaune was allowed to stay with her, if only because the chieftain was earnestly confounded by his presence. He was just as fascinated by the North Pole as Ruby, and was constantly surprised by the differences between it and his birthplace. When Ruby was free, the two spent their time exploring the city together.

Ruby's training was… difficult – that was how she would describe it if asked to, and it would be an understatement. Under the tutelage of Winter, she found herself less learning actual waterbending, and more correcting minuscule _irregularities_ in her posture and behavior.

She wasn't too annoyed at first, as Winter stressed continuously that it was something that was necessary if she was to become a proper master, but once Ruby realized that she was only getting _worse_ results with the adjustments, it became hard to hold back her frustration.

Winter felt much the same way, though she did not seem as angry at Ruby as she was at herself. She tried to device different ways to teach her pupil, but no matter what she came up with, nothing worked. Their training sessions grew shorter each day, with either Ruby coming up with an excuse to leave or Winter ending them unceremoniously.

With her sole reason for being in the North Pole going disastrously, Ruby was less than happy. But she could have dealt with it, if it wasn't for her other problem, which she judged much, much bigger.

Weiss.

Ruby and Jaune saw her only at dinner, which they shared with the chieftain, his counselors, and whatever guests he brought along for the night, but they were always seated far from each other. Barely any eye contact was made, but it was clear that the princess was suffering greatly. But when dinner was over and everyone stood up, Weiss was the first to leave, as if she were avoiding them on purpose.

Ruby thought of sneaking over to wherever Weiss was staying after dark to question her about what was going on, but she had a feeling the attempt wouldn't be well received. Plus, she didn't want to get her friend into even more trouble.

So instead, during one of their training sessions, Ruby asked Winter about it. Winter had paused briefly from what she was doing, then promptly continued her lesson. After a few more minutes, Ruby brought the topic up again, and that time, Winter turned to her with the hardest look the redhead had seen on her yet.

"Don't."

That was all Ruby got, but she wasn't ready to give up. "Fine," she had said. "I guess I'll have to find out another way, then."

* * *

 "Uh, yeah. I'm here under orders from the chieftain," Jaune said nervously. "You know. To bring his daughter food. So she won't starve. Yeah."

The guard stationed in front of Weiss' house eyed him suspiciously. "But she returned from dinner just three hours ago."

"Oh. Right," Jaune frowned, then shook his head and assumed the hardest expression he could manage. "Well, she's spoiled! That's how princesses are! And are you really going to question the chieftain? Because, sir, I know your name and I won't hesitate-"

"Woah! Calm down, kid! Just go inside already," the soldier interrupted, his eyes wide. "New recruits, I swear… They always think they're at the top of the world…"

Jaune smiled at the soldier and stepped past him, opening the door of the house and going inside. The place was very similar to where he was staying with Ruby, except there was a fireplace burning at one corner of the living room.

Seated in front of a table was Weiss, scribbling mindlessly on a piece of parchment. Jaune approached her and hesitantly touched her on the shoulder. She raised her head and looked over her shoulder, her lips parting slightly as she stared at him. "Jaune…? How did you…"

"I kinda lied to the man outside about being a new recruit in the City Guard… and that your father had me bring you some food," he said sheepishly. "That last part wasn't a total lie, though. Check this out!"

He brought up his other hand, revealing a small bag. Weiss took it and set it down on the table, then opened it gingerly, as if she expected a Grimm to come leaping out of it. When she instead found a couple slices of cake, though, her distrust was quickly replaced by a quiet joy.

"That's… thank you, Jaune," she gave him a small smile. "It's been years since I've had one of these. It's chocolate, right?"

"North Pole specialty, or at least that's what the baker lady told us. She gave it to us free of charge," Jaune said. "Sorry there's so little left. Ruby got to it first. I had to beg her to stop."

"Of course she would do that," Weiss took one of the slices. "Does she know you're here?"

"Yep. Actually, she was the one who came up with the plan," he explained. "Everybody knows she's the Avatar, but me? I'm pretty sure I'm invisible here. You'd think people would be suspicious of a guy sneaking around at the dead of night, but they didn't give me a second look," he huffed, acting as if he were annoyed, though really, he was very glad the plan had worked so well. "Should have figured the only way I would be useful here would be by being the most unremarkable guy ever."

Weiss nodded in agreement, then took a bite of the cake and munched on it slowly. Jaune stood awkwardly for a few seconds, before finally deciding to pull back a chair and sit down too. He waited in silence for Weiss to say something, but she seemed content with just enjoying her unexpected dessert.

A few minutes later, Weiss was done. She cleaned her hands and wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, then looked at Jaune expectantly. "Go ahead. Ask me," she said. "I know you're not visiting just because we're friends."

"What?" Jaune blinked. "That's not-"

"Jaune. I am not dumb, you know that very well," Weiss crossed her arms. "I figured either you or Ruby would show up here eventually. You want to know why I'm being kept here… why my father hates me," she looked away. "I'm not mad. Not at you, at least. I'm willing to answer any questions you may have."

"Oh. Okay. That was way easier than I expected," Jaune leaned back on his chair and looked helplessly at the ceiling. "Can't you make a scene or something? You really caught me off guard. I don't even know what to ask…"

Weiss rolled her eyes, then gestured helpfully to him. "Alright, then. How about you worry only about listening?" She straightened her back, taking a deep breath as she did. "How do I start…"

* * *

  _Growing up here was… tough. Yes, that seems an appropriate enough description. Don't get me wrong, I was never hungry or alone or sick. I understand many people have led much worse lives than me. But that doesn't mean I did not have real problems of my own, now does it?_

 _You've met my father. You must have seen how cold he is. But the way he deals with all the problems that arise inside_ and _outside of the city is remarkable. The people of the North Pole couldn't have chosen a better leader. So, yes, he is an incredible chieftain… and a questionable father. You'd think he would be a little warmer towards his children, but as it turns out, it's just the contrary. I can count on one hand the number of times he hugged me when I was a child._

_Believe it or not, Winter was much more of a parent to me than he ever was. She took care of me, for the most part. But she was also living with the pressure of being his heiress, perhaps even more than I was. Father was always very harsh with her, but I suppose that's what made her into who she is today, and I can't fault her for that._

_I, however, was a bit more of a rebel. Sure, I could endure all the diplomacy classes, all the learning about geography, politics, mathematic… I must admit I liked those, actually._

_But when it came time to practice waterbending? It was hell. I couldn't stand all those rigid forms and boring mental exercises. I was more… creative. My masters wouldn't have any of that. And father? He would get_ furious _whenever he caught me goofing off like that._

_Winter allowed me some more freedom. Not too much, she also believed the same things they did about waterbending. But she worked with me, tried to shape my bending as close as she could to what she considered best._

_One day, I was practicing with one of my masters, and he just couldn't get me to do some exhausting set of poses or something. I was just as frustrated, because he wouldn't let me try it my way. Eventually, I was yelling, and he left._

_Winter showed up soon after. She told me that if I really believed my way was the best way, I should try to defeat her, going all out. So I tried very, very hard. And for a while, I almost did it. Eight-year-old me, giving her big sister the fight of her life._

_But then Winter got serious, and I started to lose. I tried even harder. What little left I had of my temper was tossed away. To this day, I don't think I've ever fought so angrily. The next thing I knew, I was losing control of my bending, and there was a huge explosion of ice right in front of me…_

_That's how I got my scar._

_I fell to my knees, covering my eye. There was a lot of blood. I started to cry – and I mean_ cry _. Outright wailing, not the kind of thing you expect from a princess. Winter was just as distraught as me. I think she couldn't see my eye, the way I was covering it, and she must have thought the injury was even worse than it was._

_So there we were, a little girl bawling her eyes out and her sister worried sick that she might just have gone blind, on top of a huge network of ancient Grimm caverns. You can connect the dots._

_It took days for things to get back to normal. A lot of people died. A quarter of the city was demolished in the battle. Father wasn't happy, to say the least. Everyone was yelling at him, blaming me for what had happened. So he put on his chieftain face – not that he has any other – and banished me to the South Pole._

_And the rest is history._

* * *

 Jaune stared at her for a long while, his face a mask of shock and realization. Weiss could see him piecing together what he already knew about her and what she had just told him. That should make many things clearer for him.

"I hope this won't change how you treat me, Jaune," Weiss said quietly. "I don't express this as much as I should, but I do appreciate you. Most of the time. Half of it. Whenever you're not hitting on me or other girls."

"Hey." He crossed his arms. "I stopped hitting on you years ago."

"By no small effort of mine." She smirked. "I think if I had known you as well then as I do now, maybe things could have been different. Maybe I would have given you the time of day," she paused for a few seconds, taking pleasure in examining his suddenly glowing expression. "Most probably not, though."

"Yeah," Jaune sighed. "Let's not kid ourselves here."

"Heh. I'm sure there's a girl waiting for you out there," Weiss winced playfully. "I wish her all the patience in the world. She'll need it."

Jaune chuckled a bit, though he did not feel very comfortable doing that after what Weiss had just shared with him. The way she was acting now, cracking lighthearted jokes and praising him indirectly, was not like her at all. Maybe she was doing that to cover up how she was really feeling.

"Weiss. That's some heavy stuff, you know?" he said. "And it really isn't fair, your being banished for so long. Or at all, for that matter. Heck, you didn't even have permission to come back, so who knows when your father would have summoned you back. Now you're stuck here, alone, having to eat clandestine desserts. And all because of an innocent mistake you made as a kid."

Weiss looked away. "You don't have to tell me."

"Aren't you angry?" Jaune asked, frowning. Weiss looked back at him, staring him right in the eyes, without saying a word. "Alright. You don't wanna talk. Can I tell all this stuff to Ruby?"

"Of course. On one condition." Her expression became very harsh. "You must tell her, after you're done, that under _no circumstance_ will she take any action to alter my current predicament. I did not travel all the way here from the South Pole to have her banished because she angered my father. She's the Avatar - she should have her priorities straight."

Jaune gulped. Well, those were a lot of strong words coming from someone imprisoned in her own home. "A-alright. I'll, uh, bring you more cake sometime."

"Thank you. Good night, Jaune."

Jaune got up and walked to the door. He reached for the doorknob, but before leaving, he cast a final glance back at Weiss. She hadn't moved at all, her eyes focused sharply on the fireplace. Her hands were curled into fists, trembling on her lap.

The air was crystallizing around her.

* * *

 Winter entered the Central Hall, flexing her arms above her head to shake off the last of her drowsiness. The sun had barely risen, and nobody should be up except for her. That gave her an excellent chance to warm up by herself before Ruby's eventual arrival – which shouldn't happen for a least a couple of hours.

She gestured to the pool in the middle of the room, and the crystal at the bottom of it began to shine in response to her waterbending. The glow spread to the rest of the room, lighting up every corner, including the one where a familiar redhead was seated.

"Well," Winter said, failing to hide her awe. "You are unusually early. That gives me some hope."

Ruby rose to her feet and paced closer to her. Winter observed her carefully. Something seemed different about the young girl. While there was still quite a bit of rebelliousness in her eyes, it was vastly overshadowed by compassion and regret.

"I'm sorry," Ruby said. "I should have been more patient with you. I wanted to learn so much… when things didn't go well, I took my frustration out on you. But you were just trying your best," she bowed slightly. "I'll never make that mistake again."

"Oh," Winter wasn't sure how to respond to any of that. "Your apology is accepted. But I'm confused, where did this come- _gah_!"

She stumbled backwards from the impact of a body slamming against her. Winter looked down, only to find Ruby hugging her as if her life depended on it.

"Ruby! This is _highly_ inappropriate."

"Huh?" Ruby looked up at her innocently. "This is totally normal for me. The Air Nomads were always hugging each other, even total strangers, and you're my teacher, so that gives me even more reason to hug you."

Winter had done a lot of reading about Air Nomad culture in her life, but she couldn't remember anything related to hugs. Was Ruby lying just to get away with a hug? No. It couldn't be. She was the Avatar, very much above petty lies like that.

"I see. It is your culture" Winter let the hug linger for a little while more, before pushing the airbender away. "You should ask for permission next time, though."

"Okay!" Ruby said cheerfully. "So, let's get to training! Maybe now things are gonna work out. If I listen a little harder…"

While Winter was very glad to hear that, she was immediately suspicious. This change of attitude had seemingly occurred overnight, and she doubted an epiphany had simply come to Ruby. No, _something_ had to have happened.

"…You know."

"Huh?" Ruby frowned. "Oh. Yeah. Weiss told Jaune, and Jaune told me. About everything. You had it hard too, didn't you? I mean, your dad must have been really mad at you for what happened."

Winter closed her eyes and counted to ten mentally. She felt a sordid mess of feelings bubbling up inside her, things she hadn't felt in years. She feared if she opened her eyes and tried to take a step, she would collapse.

"Winter?" She heard Ruby call. "Are you okay?"

"Training is cancelled," Winter managed to say through gritted teeth. "Leave."

"But I thought-"

" _Leave_."

There was a moment of silence, then she heard Ruby leaving with hasty footsteps. Winter opened her eyes and found herself alone. Guilt struck at her like an ocean wave. Carefully, she sat down on the ground and took numerous calming breaths to clear her mind.

Something needed to change and, as always, she would have to be the one make it happen.

* * *

 Dining with the chieftain was never a comfortable occasion. Ruby had come to terms with that on her earliest days at the North Pole. But tonight, it seemed even worse.

There was a tension in the air, and everyone seemed aware of it. Jacques hadn't said a word to his advisors since he had seated himself. Winter was equally as silent, though she kept throwing glances at him, Ruby and her sister. Weiss' eyes never left her plate.

Even Jaune was quiet! That was the last straw for Ruby. If she couldn't count on her best friend to lighten the mood a little, then things were truly lost. It was probably time to throw herself off a cliff or something – maybe then someone would show some emotion!

Just as she laid down her fork and opened her mouth to say something, _anything_ , Winter turned to her father and started speaking. "Father. I've been pondering some… questions, as of late. Related to waterbending. The arts and teachings that come out of it."

He finished chewing on his meat before addressing her. "And?"

Winter looked away for a moment, as if considering how to best put her thoughts into words. "We believe mastery of waterbending comes with the utmost control of one's mind. While a bender might have memorized every technique taught to her, it takes a proper mindset for her to master them. A mind clear of emotions, always focused…" she paused. "Recent occurrences have led me to question that belief. Yes, that path has made many powerful waterbenders – myself included – but it doesn't have to be the only path. Some people… find their own ways, and they aren't any inferior to ours."

Ruby saw Weiss finally look up, her eyes filled with hope as she listened to her sister's words. The chieftain's advisors looked to be barely containing their reactions, but Ruby could tell they weren't very fond of what they were hearing.

"I see. You are not the first person to hold that opinion. Although the fact that you are a Grandmaster gives _some_ legitimacy to it," Jacques said. "But you did not bring that up as a casual topic of conversation. Surely, there is some purpose to it."

"Yes. I am afraid training the Avatar has been difficult, to put mildly. She is… different, than my usual pupils," Winter looked down at her lap. "It is my fault only, of course. I have failed as a teacher. But I believe there are some elements I might bring to her training that could make it finally work. They are highly unusual, however, so I would have to ask your permission first."

Jacques sighed, as if he already knew what was coming. "Name your requests."

"I would like to train Weiss alongside Ruby," Winter said, and flinched as half the advisors glared at her immediately. Some of them looked ready to flip over the table. "Weiss was very successful in her teachings while they made their way here. I hope that by teaching her, she may in turn teach the Avatar. That way, as they say…" her eyes straightened. "…everybody wins."

The chieftain was silent for a moment as he cut a slice of meat for himself. "Your request is denied." He took the meat to his mouth and continued to eat like nothing had happened.

For a moment, Winter's eyes sparked with anger, but then she slumped in her chair, defeated. It was such a wrong look for the regal Grandmaster, Ruby had to contain a gasp. Weiss' eyes fell back to her plate, yet now she wasn't even bothering to eat. She was as still as a statue, not a single emotion apparent in her blue eyes.

Ruby did nothing for a few seconds, just trembling in her seat as she looked from the father to his two daughters. And then suddenly, she rose to her feet and slammed her hands on the table. " _What_?"

Everyone looked at her in startle, except Weiss. Winter shook her head fervently, as if to signal to her to stop whatever she was planning to do, but Ruby was far too bewildered to comply.

"This is ridiculous!" Ruby exclaimed. "I mean, just _what_?! These are your daughters, shouldn't you trust them a little bit? Winter is a Grandmaster! And the only reason Weiss isn't one is because you're too stubborn to-"

"Do _not_ lecture me about my children!" Jacques interrupted, a vein throbbing in his forehead. "Avatar or not, that is not your place. You haven't lived enough. You aren't even a woman yet! Not to mention you are here under _my_ hospitality," he looked at Ruby in scorn. "Did your mother not teach you respect?"

Ruby faltered, struck by how low he was willing to go. "You… you're a jerk!" She clenched her fists. "You know what - I don't even care anymore. You don't deserve an Avatar! I'll find my master in a freaking swamp, if that's what it takes to learn waterbending!"

Jacques smiled. "Perhaps it is not that we don't deserve you, but that we don't _need_ you. The Avatar was gone for fifteen years, but the world endured, while your recent reappearance has been followed only by rising tensions and tragedy. By all means, go search in a swamp, and only return when we've dealt with this war!"

He lifted a hand to wave her away, but just as he did, a loud noise echoed above his head. Everyone turned to look at Weiss, who was standing up, retracting a water whip back to her hand.

"I could stand it when I was the one being mistreated," she said coldly, her voice resembling her father's so closely, it was disturbing. "But you have gone too far. _Apologize_."

For the first time, the chieftain appeared unbalanced. If Ruby hadn't been there to see, she would have said Weiss had truly hit him with her waterbending.

"You. Mistreated," he said. "You still believe you're not to blame for plunging this city into chaos!"

"Blame? I was just a child, and I was hurt," Weiss stated. "Yes, I should have behaved better. And a lot of people got… _hurt_. But that was ten years ago. You need to _move_. _On_."

"Tell that to the people who lost loved ones that day."

Weiss tensed, and Ruby thought she was going to start yelling. But instead, she set her shoulders straight, stepped closer to her father, and poked a finger at his chest. "Fine. I'll apologize to every single one of them. Do you want to know why?" She leaned closer. "Because unlike you, I'm not willing to throw the fate of the world to the wind just because I'm too proud to admit to my flaws."

She took a step back, looked at the bewildered advisors, and rolled her eyes. "Throw me in a jail cell. See if I care," she waited for a response, and when there was none, she smiled contently. "I thought so. It's quite easy to point your fingers at someone, but when it comes time to do something about it…"

Without another word, she turned around and walked away. Jacques was silent, his mind clearly somewhere else, while at his side, Winter tried to conceal a little smile.

Ruby sat back down, eyes wide, and shook her head slowly. "Wow."

"You tell me," Jaune whispered at her side. Then he sat up a little straighter to examine everyone else's plates. "Uh, any chance you guys have some of that fish left? Mine's gone cold. Anybody? No?"

There was no response from anyone.

"Ruby, this dinner sucks."

* * *

 Ruby woke up late the next day. She hadn't been able to fall asleep for a long time, kept up by all that had happened the day before. She considered waking up Jaune and going to find Weiss, so they could all get out of the North Pole already, but that didn't feel right. She at least owed Winter one last chance.

Yeah, that was it. One more training session. If it amounted to nothing, she would pack her things and go. Not that she had many things to carry around.

"Guuh." She rubbed her eyes tiredly. "Never sleeping late again…"

She exited her house and headed towards the Waterbending Academy. Along the way she came across a lot of people who cast dark glances at her. It was a little creepy – had people heard about what had happened during the dinner, and now they all hated her or something? It was quite the change from the respect she had been getting before.

She quickened her steps, and ten minutes after, arrived at the Academy. She skipped along to the Central Hall, trying to ignore the waterbenders staring at her crossly. "Jeez. These guys can hold a grudge," she muttered under her breath.

Finally, she was inside. Winter was already waiting for her, leaning back against a wall with a pleasant smile on her lips.

"Uhm. Hi?" Ruby did a double take. "Everyone's acting weird today…"

"Apologies. I'm in a good mood," Winter said, walking closer to her. She gestured at the pool, lighting up the room. "I feared you wouldn't show up today."

"Oh, well. I couldn't just leave, not without warning you," Ruby sighed. "Uhm, maybe we can try different stuff. We don't _need_ Weiss to help us, I think."

"You _think_?" An unexpected voice came from behind her, making Ruby jump and turn around in fright, only to find Weiss staring at her critically. "My feelings are hurt."

"Weiss! What are you doing here?!" Ruby yelled. "Oh my gosh, hide! They're gonna arrest you! Winter, make us an ice cover!"

Winter only stared in mild amusement as Ruby tried to envelop Weiss with her cloak, much to the younger sister's annoyance.

"Ruby! Stop this nonsense!" Weiss shoved her away. "I am allowed to be here. In fact, I am allowed to be wherever I want."

Ruby crossed her arms and looked at her suspiciously. Winter cleared her throat, bringing the young redhead's attention back to her. "The chieftain had a change of mind. Doubtlessly, he was _inspired_ what we had to say," she explained. "Weiss has been forgiven for her role in the Grimm incident. As a result, there are no more obstacles to her joining our lessons. Say welcome to your new partner."

"Partner?" Weiss scoffed. "I am still her teacher, I believe."

"How adorable," Winter crossed her arms. " _No_."

Weiss smiled a little, then gestured with her head towards the outside. Winter nodded and walked away, giving them some momentary privacy.

"Ruby. Did Jaune tell you I didn't want you to intervene?" Weiss asked. Ruby looked up at the ceiling and dragged her foot along the floor, trying to appear innocent. "I should have known you wouldn't listen. You risked being banished just to help me," she smiled. "Thank you."

Ruby blushed. "Uh, I did very little. You were the one who spoke up for me," she stammered. "I didn't know you could get so angry at someone."

"Ruby, please," Weiss put her hands on her hips. "You absolutely knew."

Ruby nodded in agreement. Weiss stepped closer and hugged her. The Avatar laughed nervously and patted her on the back, grateful that Weiss couldn't see how red she was.

Unfortunately for her, Winter chose that moment to return, and she didn't fail to notice the redhead's predicament. The older heiress looked at her face for a moment, then smirked and winked at her knowingly. "Enough of that, you two. It's time to get to work."

Winter walked past them, then stopped before the pool and turned, a serious expression on her face.

"Assume your stances."

Ruby straightened her back and raised her hands in front of her, doing an awkward imitation of a form Winter had taught her. She held herself like a statue for a while, dead serious – then glanced sideways and noticed Weiss beside her, in a much looser and more confident stance.

"Ruby," Weiss rolled her eyes. "Would you correct that rubbish so we can get started?"

"Excuse me?" Winter glared at her. "I'll have you know that form has been taught long before the foundation of this Academy. It is decidedly _not_ rubbish, young lady."

"I mean," Ruby uttered carefully, easing her shoulders. "It kinda is."

Weiss nodded approvingly, and Ruby shifted her form accordingly to copy hers. Winter sighed heavily.

"I knew I would regret this."


	18. Love and Doubt

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

  **Book One: Water**

**Chapter Eighteen: Love and Doubt**

* * *

 "Eyes up! Head down!"

Ruby yelped and dove sideways, barely avoiding Winter's projected torrent. She tried to regain her balance, but her feet skidded along the icy floor of the Central Hall, setting her to collide against a wall.

"Never put all your momentum in one movement!" Winter continued to yell, drawing an even bigger torrent from the well behind her and sending it flying against the struggling redhead. "Always have your next step planned out!"

Ruby gritted her teeth and jumped again, vaulting at high speed towards the wall. Thinking fast, she kicked against it, boosting herself back towards Winter and over the attack.

"Well…" Ruby swung with her staff, bending the water back towards its original commander. "I like improvising!"

Winter simply raised a hand, and the torrent split into two and flowed around her harmlessly. She gave Ruby a stern glance, then sighed and looked to the corner of the room, where her little sister was watching. "There is nothing I can say that will change her attitude, is there?"

Weiss just shrugged, though a grin did form on her lips. Ruby landed back on the ground, this time being more careful as to keep her balance.

"I suppose it's about time I conformed myself to simply teaching you the physical side of waterbending," Winter shook her head slowly. "At least in that aspect, you excel. Not as much as Weiss, of course, but that will fix itself with time… hopefully."

"Jeez, Winter," Ruby pouted. "You sure know how to compliment people."

"You jest, but I _am_ feeling very flattered right now," Weiss said, looking very smug.

Ruby rolled her eyes, but she couldn't stay annoyed for long, not with such an incredible pair of teachers. Only two weeks had passed since her training had effectively begun, yet her waterbending had already risen to a level ten times higher than before.

Winter was an experienced teacher. She knew exactly how to best demonstrate every waterbending move in her arsenal, and she had the patience to repeat them as many times as necessary. And Weiss had taken incredibly well to translating her sister's teaching to something more compatible to Ruby's own manner of bending.

But – and Ruby would never have the courage to say it out loud - spending so much time with the sisters was a little bit… suffocating. Winter always had such a commanding presence, Ruby wouldn't dare not give her best, in fear of disappointing her. And Weiss… well…

"Is it midday already?" Weiss' voice snapped Ruby from her thoughts. The princess was standing near the entrance of the hall, looking up at the sky to determine what time of day it was. "I can't be late _again_ …"

"Huh?" Ruby skipped next to her. "Another meeting with your father? Man, Old Man Jacques sure has a lot to talk about."

"Never let him hear you call him that," Weiss muttered, mortified. "But, yes. He… has a lot to say. As do I. Sister, may I be excused?"

Winter waved her off, and Weiss turned and exited the building quickly, a small smile appearing on her lips. Ruby watched her go suspiciously.

"Hmm. Weiss looks oddly happy about meeting her father," Ruby looked at Winter sideways. "You know, the dude who banished her from her home and all that?"

"Are you suggesting something, Ruby?" Winter asked bemusedly. "I assure you she is telling you the truth. Do you really believe Weiss would lie to your face like that?"

Ruby stared at Winter, her eyes straightening in a way she imagined was very intimidating and astute. The next thing she knew, she was knocked to the floor, feeling the sting of being whipped in the forehead with a string of water.

She looked up dizzily, about to yell and complain about the unexpected assault, but her anger faded quickly when she saw Winter glaring at her as if she were the worst human being she had ever come across.

"Respect your elders!" Winter yelled, returning to her teaching tone of voice. "Get back on your feet! Now!"

" _Eep_!"

* * *

 Somewhere outside, far from the deck above, lighting struck the ocean. The ship rocked and leaned dangerously to the right, and for a moment, Yang was both afraid and hopeful that it would turn completely. She heard yells and a multitude of people running above her.

Weeks spent sitting on a wooden chair, with her hands stuck behind her back, hadn't broken her spirit, but her body was another matter altogether. Her head hung low, and she had to struggle to even keep her eyes opened. The only thing that still kept her awake was the hope of escape.

And if there ever would be a time to escape, it was now.

The people who had captured her – she still hadn't figured out their identity, though she had many good guesses – weren't stupid. Instead of tying her hands with rope she could have burned through effortlessly, they had used iron cuffs, the thickest she had ever seen.

But still, they had underestimated her. From the first day she had woken up, Yang had been working on the cuffs, blasting them with small doses of firebending to weaken their structure. Barring a closer look, they seemed intact. Luckily for her, the guy who brought her food wasn't very bright.

Yang took a deep breath and nodded her head a few times to shake away her drowsiness, then angled her hands upward carefully and released one last continuous blast of fire. A few seconds passed with nothing happening, and she almost sobbed at the thought that her efforts had been in vain, but finally the iron gave way, a searing fissure running down the middle of the cuffs.

Yang jumped to her feet and flexed her arms, almost yelling in joy. Lightning struck again, and she put her head back in her mission. Carefully, she walked to the door and reached for the doorknob.

"Please don't make me melt this too," she muttered under her breath. To her amazement, the knob turned without resistance, and with a gentle push, the door opened. "Okay… That's just dumb. Now I feel bad for getting captured by Mister No Keys."

A dark hallway extended in front of her. She stumbled forward warily, considering bringing a small flame to life to light her way. It would probably get her caught, but the only other alternative was to wander around aimlessly.

Thunder rumbled, and not a second later, a flash of white filled the hallway. Yang winced and closed her eyes. She reached forward blindly until her hands met with a wall. She leaned against it, then slowly walked along the hallway, using the wall to orientate herself while she kept her eyes down to the ground, to avoid being blinded by the next lightning.

Her foot hit something. Yang looked up carefully and saw a set of stairs leading up to the deck. It was morning, but the sky was filled with grey clouds. Furious waves jumped from the ocean, sometimes doubling the size of the ship. It seemed only pure luck had saved it from sinking, at least until now.

Above the sound of the raging ocean and the storm, Yang heard a man shouting. " _Go_! To the shore! Move, you dimwits, if you wanna live, _move_! Oh crap here comes another-"

A wave hit the ship, and Yang collapsed on the steps. Grunting, she got halfway up and raced up the stairs, not caring about being seen. Not that anyone seemed to care either, the crew being too busy saving their ship and their lives, of course.

Except for the captain. Oh, the captain. Yang groaned and looked away from the man shouting orders from near the prow. She was feeling _very_ bad about getting captured, now.

"Hey, Junior!" she shouted, marching towards him, fists igniting

He turned to look at her, the skin on his face becoming completely red. "You! How did you get out?!" He stomped on the floor of the ship. "Get back to your room, right now!"

"Yeah, I don't think so," Yang smirked. "You're not my dad. Speak of…" Her expression grew serious again. "What did you do to him?"

"What?! I did _nothing_ to – gah! Can't you see we're in the middle of a freaking storm?!" Junior put his hands on his head and looked at the sky in frustration. "This isn't the time, Blondie!"

"Oh, no," Yang raised a hand. "You did not just call me-"

The skies rumbled, and there was a flash of white. Junior took his attention away from Yang and returned to ordering his men around.

Yang's ire burst to the surface, coming to life as an aura of fire around her, and she dashed towards him, shouting. She formed a ball of fire on her hand and aimed it right at his head…

And suddenly, her feet were off the floor, the ship turning as a massive wave enveloped it. Yang reached for something, anything to hold onto, but the ocean was relentless, and she was dragged away, sinking deep beneath the surface, reaching up to the sky.

The last thing she saw was the Fire Nation's insignia on the side of the ship slowly being engulfed by water.

* * *

 Jaune sighed as he walked through the streets of the North Pole, practically dragging Ruby along by the wrist. He couldn't say he was unsympathetic of her current behavior – he too was tired of lunching with the chieftain, after all – but he was a bit surprised that he had to treat her like a child to get her to cooperate.

Well… at least she had stopped kicking.

"Jaaaune!" she whined. "Please just let me go back. _Pleaseeee_ …"

"No," Jaune shook his head firmly. "We're going to this lunch whether you want it or not. The chieftain will be offended if we don't come."

"But Jaaaaaune! He is such a meanie…" Ruby punched him lightly in the shoulder. "Maybe you can go and eat with him, then bring me back some food? He won't be offended if at least one of us show up."

"Nope. I said _we_ , but really, he doesn't even know I exist. _You_ , on the other hand, are the Avatar," Jaune pointed out.

Ruby opened her mouth to protest, but he stopped suddenly and crossed his arms, giving her a stern look she didn't know he was capable of.

"Ruby. I have seven little sisters. _Seven_. Do you know how much I learned about girls, living with them on an igloo without separate bedrooms? A lot. Too much, some would say," one of his eyes twitched. "So don't try to negotiate with me, or make me feel guilty, or anything. I'm immune to all that. Got it?"

Ruby pouted exaggeratedly while looking him in the eyes, but Jaune just stared right back. Defeated, Ruby groaned and kicked him in the shin. He yelped and jumped on one foot, almost falling off the street and into the water.

"You're a meanie too," she said matter-of-factly.

"Sure. And you're a saint," Jaune murmured, feeling sorry for himself. After the pain on his shin faded, he stood straight again and patted Ruby on the shoulder. "Look at the bright side. Weiss will be there too."

"S-so what?!" Ruby exclaimed, her voice cracking very loudly. She gulped and started walking again, as if she weren't begging to stay a minute ago. "Why should that comfort me? I mean, I'm totally over her! Duh! We're just friends! And besides, she's my teacher, and in the North Pole, that is a very special bond that shouldn't be tainted by kissing or anything like that."

Jaune grinned. "Who said anything about-"

"Finish that sentence, and I will hit you in the head with my staff, then toss you in the water," Ruby interrupted, not even turning to look at him.

Jaune swallowed dry, both surprised and mortified by how much Ruby had sounded like Weiss, threatening him like that. He guessed Ruby was picking up more than only waterbending moves from her.

After a few more minutes of walking, during which Ruby promptly returned to her usual bubbly self without speaking a word of their previous topic of conversation, they arrived at the palace. In front of it a long table was set, with various dishes resting on top of it.

The chieftain and Winter were already there, as were some other members of the Tribe Ruby didn't know. The Avatar paused briefly, checking again for Weiss, but truly, the youngest princess wasn't there. Jaune poked her discreetly, and she moved again, taking her seat at Winter's side.

"Welcome, Avatar. It is always a pleasure to share a meal with you," the chieftain greeted her with a smile too perfect to be genuine. His eyes wandered to Jaune as he too sat down. "And you too, mister…"

"Jaune," the boy waved nervously, then added under his breath. "As I've said more than twenty times now."

"It's a pleasure to see you too, chieftain! And Winter!" Ruby nodded eagerly, and her teacher smiled slightly. "Uh, where's Weiss…?"

Winter allowed her smile to flourish fully and gestured to Ruby in a calming manner. "Don't worry. She'll be here soon."

As if summoned by her sister's words, Weiss appeared, almost running and gliding on the icy floor. She came to a halt and took a seat beside her father, as if she had always been there, and smiled to Ruby and Jaune.

The chieftain seemed comically nonchalant about his youngest daughter's odd appearance, which made Ruby wonder if he was really hungry or had simply learned to ignore Weiss' more unusual antics since she had returned to her homeland. "Let us eat," he said, and then Ruby definitely knew her first thought was right.

Jaune immediately bit on a huge piece of seal meat, while Ruby chose some vegetables imported from the Earth Kingdom, which she knew were much healthier for her in the long run – although she ate just as quickly as he did.

"Miss Ruby," Jacques spoke. "I am interested in hearing how your training has been going. Have my daughters proved to be the right teachers for you?"

Ruby grudgingly took a break from eating to reply. "Yes, they are pretty great! Both of them!" She was being honest, of course, but she also wanted to get the conversation over quickly so she could get back to her meal. "I'm learning a lot. Winter says I could be a master in a year's time."

Winter shot her a searing look. _I did not say any such thing_ , Ruby imagined her saying. The redhead just smiled in response. If all it took to improve a friend's reputation was a harmless lie, then she would do that every time!

"I see. It pleases me to hear that," the chieftain said, then shook his head sadly. "You see, Winter doesn't have much time to talk with me, regrettably, and Weiss… I've given up on trying to arrange meetings with her. It is unfortunate that I have to get my information about my daughters from you."

"Oh," Ruby frowned. "But I thought you and Weiss were talking this morning? And yesterday and… every other day…"

Jacques raised an eyebrow at her, then turned his attention back to his food. Ruby glared at Winter, but she just acted like she hadn't heard anything.

"Well that's suspicious." Jaune noted.

"Yep," Ruby looked at Weiss, who was engaged in conversation with another guest of her father's, seemingly clueless to the conversation that had happened beside her. " _Very_ suspicious."

"Let me guess," Jaune said, making his best Ruby impression. "We are getting to the bottom of this!"

"Yes!" Ruby exclaimed, not even registering how similar they sounded. "We are getting to the bottom of this!"

* * *

 Yang woke up with moist sand against her back and small ripples of the ocean's waves reaching her feet. She opened her eyes and saw a sky so clear, with the sun shining so brightly, for a moment she wondered if she had just imagined the storm.

As she sat up and looked around the beach, she noticed Junior's crew running in the shallow water, desperately gathering pieces of their ship. The vessel itself was not too far off in the distance, and although it was damaged, it did not look unsalvageable, at least in Yang's eyes. Luck still was on Junior's side, it seemed.

Amidst the desperate crew was Junior, shouting orders and urging his people to save every bit of floating wreckage they found, no matter how small it was. Yang clenched her fists, but wisely decided to postpone a confrontation with him, at least until she knew exactly where she was.

Looking over her shoulder, she noticed a village that sprung from the end of the beach, and behind that, a great mountain with what appeared to be temples on top of it. Yang frowned, trying to figure out where she was, but she couldn't recall any description that matched this place. But at least she was sure they weren't on Earth Kingdom soil, so it was most probably an island.

But there was only one way for her to be sure. Grunting with effort, Yang rose to her feet and walked towards Junior, regulating her breath to better control her firebending, as her father had taught her. She felt weak and exhausted, but she knew she could take Junior. He was no big threat.

"Oi! Junior!" she yelled at him. "Wanna get out of that puddle and face me? There's no storm for you to use as an excuse anymore!"

Junior turned with an exasperated expression on his face. He looked at her, shook his head, then walked closer. "Ever heard the expression 'don't look a gift horse in the mouth'?" he asked. "Because I just gave you the opportunity to walk away. I let you rest up, unperturbed, even though some of my guys wanted to punch you for what you did to them on our last encounter. And you still wanna pick a fight with me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Yang rolled her eyes. "You're right, I am being so _rude_. I should just forget you kidnapped me."

"Look, Blondie, I didn't come up with the idea. General Torchwick entrusted me with the job, and I couldn't very well refuse it, now could I?" Junior waved her off. "Anyways, that doesn't matter anymore. My ship's a wreck. Gonna take weeks and lots of money to fix it, and frankly, I don't wanna bother with you anymore. So walk away."

"Sure. As soon as you tell me where my father is," Yang said.

"How would I know?" He turned his back to her and started walking back into the sea. "Just walk away, princess."

Yang's eyes narrowed. She raised a fist and swung, sending a fireball soaring towards the back of his head. He turned to look, eyes wide with fear… and the projectile dissipated long before reaching him, like the last waning embers of a fireplace.

Yang stumbled, feeling the world spinning around her. She had underestimated how weak she was and spent what little energy she had left in that fruitless stunt. Hissing, she fell to her knees and closed her eyes.

"Told ya to walk away," Junior grinned. "Neo? You wanna deal with her?"

Yang was too dizzy to act surprised when the brown-and-pink-haired girl appeared in front of her, wearing her usual psychotic smile. Neo raised an open palm, released a mute chortle, and swung down.

* * *

 The sun had set long ago in the North Pole. The night was silent. Everyone had already returned to their homes to sleep and rise the next day. Everyone except Ruby and Jaune, of course.

The pair was currently sitting on top of a building in the easternmost edge of the city, sharing little snacks while they silently observed the house opposite to them. The windows there still showed candlelight coming from inside, and occasionally, they'd hear laugher and snippets of conversation. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough information to set their minds at ease – or Ruby's mind, to be more accurate.

"Ruby?" Jaune whispered hesitantly after swallowing his eighth cookie that night. "Uhm… Don't you think this is kinda… wrong? I mean, you're the Avatar. And spying on your friends doesn't sound like something the Avatar should do…"

Ruby looked at him, giving his opinion some consideration. "Yeah. Maybe," she returned to staring at the house like a hawk. "I gotta find out, though. What if Weiss is involved in something bad?"

"Maybe you should just… I don't know, ask her?" Jaune proposed.

"Jaune, that's crazy talk. She wouldn't tell me, obviously, 'cause she would be involved in bad stuff! She could get hurt," Ruby said.

"But… what if she's not, and we're just intruding on her privacy because of nothing?"

She turned to look at him again, her eyes sharp like razors. Jaune raised his hands and sighed.

"Look. I think it's great you're worried about her. I am too," he said. "But I'm not comfortable with this, Ruby. Not anymore. So maybe you could float me down to the street and you could tell me in the morning if anything happened?"

"Ugh. Fine, you win!" Ruby groaned. "We shouldn't be doing this. Let's go back ho-"

Before she could finish her sentence, the door of the house opened, and Weiss stepped out, the light from behind her showering one side of her face, revealing a smile and an eye filled with emotion. Ruby had never seen her so content before, so at peace, and as she watched, she couldn't help but be mesmerized by the sight.

Then another person stepped out, a boy the same age as Weiss, with light blue hair and a confident smile. He handed her something – a flower, perhaps, but it couldn't be, not with how cold the North Pole was – and she laughed, then kissed him on the cheek. They waved to each other, then she walked away, and he went back inside and closed the door.

For a long time, Ruby and Jaune did nothing. He refused to turn his head, afraid of what he might see in his best friend's face. He had had to comfort her once about something like this before, and that had been hard enough on both of them. He didn't know if he could handle a repeat of that.

"Well," Ruby stood up and shook the cookie crumbles off her clothes. "That was awkward," she grinned. "Turns out you had the right idea about leaving sooner."

"Uh, right!" Jaune rubbed the back of his neck, not knowing what to make of her reaction. "You… uh, okay, Ruby?"

"Sure. Why wouldn't I be?" Ruby raised a hand. "Alright, dumb question. But seriously. I'm fine. Promise."

"Okay then…" Jaune said. "I guess we should get back. I'm tired."

"You tell me! A full stomach always makes me sleepy, and I'm absolutely stuffed!"

Spinning her staff, Ruby carefully lowered Jaune to the street below in a miniature tornado. She stalled for a moment, giving the house a lasting look. The lights were going out one by one. Whoever that boy was, he was going to sleep now. Maybe he'd dream of…

"Ruby!" Jaune whispered. "What are you doing?"

Ruby jumped down, landing beside him gracefully. "Sorry. My cloak was a little loose, that's all."

Jaune gave her a suspicious look. She stuck her tongue out, and he made an indignant noise, then marched away. Ruby sighed, then followed him with small steps.

* * *

 "Ah. Are my eyes playing tricks on me, or is the sleeping beauty finally waking up?"

Yang opened her eyes, seeing a blurry wooden ceiling above her. She blinked and looked around, her vision slowly adjusting to her surroundings. She felt like she'd been asleep for weeks – and as far as she knew, that could very well be true.

She didn't recognize the quaint little house she was in, with only a single bed, in which she was lying, and a meager fireplace, and the stocks of food left at a corner. Neither did she recognize the old woman sitting beside her, but she wore such a kind expression, Yang immediately felt safe in her presence.

"Where…" she started to say, but her throat was too dry for her to speak properly. The stranger raised a hand patiently, then handed her a cup of water. Yang drank from it in long sips until it was empty, then spoke again. "Thanks. Where am I?"

"My house. My name's Ama," the woman introduced herself. "I've been taking care you for a while now. It's been three days since I found you on the beach."

"Yang," the firebender frowned. "The beach? Oh, right," she nodded, her memories coming back to her all at once. "That makes sense. Thanks again. For saving me."

"Please, it was nothing. You just needed a nice bed to sleep in, regain your forces, and a little medicinal tea, and that's two things I can spare. If I didn't bother to help a stranger in need, what message would that send to the young ones, huh?" Ama chuckled. "And it seemed like you had gotten into trouble with those Fire Nation buffoons, and that, my dear, means you're one of the good ones."

Yang smiled weakly, though a bitter feeling came twisting up inside her. She wondered how Ama would react if she told her she was not only Fire Nation, but its princess heir. Not well, she supposed.

"What happened to them? The Fire Nation guys?" she asked.

"Well, their ship was wrecked in that storm. I guess you knew that already. Now they're working on fixing it," Ama replied bitterly. "Lucky them, we've got the materials they need, but they come at price, of course. When their captain realized they couldn't afford it… Well, he decided there wouldn't be a price anymore."

"Junior. That jerk…" Yang clutched the covers of the bed angrily. "I'm gonna teach him a lesson…"

"Not in this condition, you won't," Ama raised an eyebrow at her. "And, while I admire your enthusiasm… They're too many, dear, and they've got that creepy girl with the weird eyes. She's dangerous, I can tell. You would only get yourself hurt again."

Yang stayed silent. She could take Junior and his men, she was sure of it. She had done it before without even using her firebending. Throwing Neo in the mix complicated matters, but if she kept her wits about her, Yang could win. But Ama had a point. She was still too weak, and if she failed, she had a feeling Junior wouldn't spare her again.

"Honestly, dear, the world's gone mad. There's hasn't been peace for a while now, but lately…" Ama shook her head. "A new Avatar. Grimm becoming bolder. And now there's a huge Fire Nation fleet heading straight to the North Pole…"

"W-what?" Yang's eyes widened. "Did you just say…?"

"Yes. The maniacs have been at war with the Earth Kingdom for so long, they must have grown bored," Ama said. "Now they want to drag the Water Tribe into that mess!"

Yang swept her hair back and stared fixedly at the ceiling. It had been coming for some time now, she knew. Heck, she had been there when Torchwick had threatened Weiss with war against her people. But to hear it was actually happening…

"The Avatar is there," she muttered. "She can fight them off."

"Hopefully they'll take each other out," Ama said. "The Fire Nation and the Avatar. Then we'd only have to deal with the Grimm from now on."

Yang sat up in the bed and stared into Ama's eyes, and the old woman flinched and retreated a bit in her chair. Yang blinked and looked down at her closed fists. The anger had come so easily, she hadn't even thought about it. Just a natural reaction, and truthful enough to be noticed immediately by Ama.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to be so hostile. You've treated me so kindly…" Yang said slowly. "But you're wrong about the Avatar. She's a good person."

"Hmm. You're not the first girl to tell me that recently. I suppose there must be some truth to what you believe…" Ama smiled. "But it will take more than a few lectures to heal the wounds the Avatar dealt me and my village."

"That's… fair." Yang said, remembering she had once been even more stubborn about expressing the same position. That felt like a lifetime ago, now.

Ama got up from her chair. "You should rest a little more, while I prepare you some food. You look like you're only skin and bones, dear."

Yang grinned. She hadn't heard anything like that for years. Growing up, her father had always been very insistent about the value of a healthy diet, and at some point, the lesson had stuck.

Laying back and thinking of her father, Yang fell into a gentle slumber.

* * *

 "Head up."

Winter flicked her wrist, sending a string of water whipping in Ruby's direction. The girl barely reacted in time, looking up one second before the attack struck and ducking a hair's width under it.

"Keep moving. Standing still as you are, you are as easy an opponent as a wooden target," Winter lectured neutrally, though she found herself getting annoyed at Ruby's current behavior. She had grown used to correcting the girl's mistakes in the flow of combat, but this… this was different. As an airbender, she shouldn't have to be encouraged to move during combat.

Ruby nodded mutely and started to pace around her, but as she did, her head lowered again, as did her eyes. Winter's expression steeled, and she flicked her wrist again, this time hitting the floor just beside Ruby, startling her.

"I _said_ , head _up_ ," Winter repeated. "Ruby. Are you well? Should we finish this session early, seeing as how it is going nowhere?"

"N-no! I'm sorry," Ruby gulped and stood straighter, getting a firmer grip on her staff. "I was distracted, that's all. But I promise I'll focus from now on."

"Alright. It's good that you admit to your mistake, and you're already working on fixing it. That's the attitude of a waterbending master," Winter said. She paused for a moment, letting the compliment sink in. "Shall we start back from the beginning?"

Ruby nodded fervently, assuming her standard waterbending pose. Winter looked her up and down, having to contain a smile. She looked utterly ridiculously, but she supposed whatever worked for her would have to do.

Winter brought up a couple orbs of water from the well and contemplated on how to use them. As she did, her gaze stayed on Ruby, and she absently noticed her pupil's enthusiasm diminishing.

With a sigh, Winter ceased her bending. "Is it about Weiss not being here?"

Ruby flinched and looked away, and Winter knew she was correct. "N-no," Ruby said. "Okay, maybe a little. I am… kinda worried about her meeting her father so often. She's not in trouble, is she?"

"…No," Winter frowned. "She is fine."

"More than fine," Ruby muttered, and Winter could detect an edge of bitterness in her voice. "Anyway, it's silly. Let's get to training! Woo! Teach me the, uh… Crazy Octo-Shark Technique!"

Winter tilted her head. She could read Ruby as easily as a book. Something had been gnawing at her for days now, something related to Weiss, and to hide that, she was retreating behind her usual cheerful behavior.

But the waterbending master didn't say anything. If Ruby didn't want to speak her mind, she didn't have to. And Winter had neither the will nor the patience to wrestle the truth out of her.

"Woo!" Ruby moved her arms like tentacles. "Octo-Shark!"

Well, not for now, at least. But if it ever became necessary… Winter had her ways.

* * *

 The island's inn was noisier than it had ever been, and it had once housed Air Nomad reunions – contrary to popular belief, airbenders knew very well how to throw a party. There were a few of the usual costumers, but the majority of the noise came from the Fire Nation… _visitors_.

Junior cackled and hit his nearest companion in the back while they gulped down their mugs of beer. It had been a while since he'd had the pleasure of enjoying a good drink, and this island's product was fantastic. It almost made him glad the ship had wrecked and brought them to this forgotten point in Remnant.

Still, this venture would be a disaster for him in the end, he knew. His one opportunity to rise in the rankings of the army was ruined. General Torchwick, whenever he got back from his invasion, would want to burn him alive for letting go of that unbearable princess. It was imperative that the ship be fixed as fast as possible, so he could get the hell out of the island and hide for the rest of his life.

"Gah…" He put his mug down and wiped the sweat of his brow. "Probably gonna have to live in a swamp."

"Swamp?" His companion hiccupped. "Swamp?! No, no, no. There are… swampbenders there! Bad. Don't go there."

"Swampbenders? Really?" Junior scoffed. "I'm not drunk enough to believe in that yet."

His companion opened his mouth to respond, but then his eyes rolled up and he collapsed on the counter in front of them. Junior just shook his head in disappointment.

Without warning, the door of the inn flew open, producing a deafening noise when it slammed against the wall. Every conversation died as Yang strut inside, wearing a sweet little smile on her lips.

"Junior!" she sang, pushing the collapsed man out of his seat and taking it for herself. "Long no time no see, eh?"

"Blondie…" He growled. "I told you to walk away…"

"And I did!" Yang frowned. "Well, to be more precise, Neo knocked me out…" she turned to look at the corner of the inn, from where Neo was watching with great interest. "… and then I was taken in by a kind old woman and did not approach you since then."

"That sounds nothing like walking away," Junior noted grumpily. "Do I need to set Neo on you again?"

"Oh, that's so sweet. You think she can take me?" Yang chuckled. "Don't worry. I just wanna know some stuff. You know, since you're practically a traitor to the nation, I figure there's no harm in you spilling some information. What do you say?"

Junior closed his eyes for a moment, then sighed and gestured half-heartedly for her to go on.

"Awesome," Yang said. "So. How, and why did you kidnap me?"

"Torchwick's orders. He wanted me to keep you prisoner until he came back from his stupid invasion. Obviously, that's not happening anymore, since you're a pest," Junior explained. "And as for how I got you… I have friends. Waterbending friends, two wonderful sisters. You'd like them."

"Eh," Yang shrugged. "Maybe someday we can have a chat. Do you have any idea how many forces are being sent to the invasion?"

" _A lot_ of ships. They left behind just enough to keep some light control of the Earth coast," Junior rolled his eyes. "Why do you even care? Planning to stop the invasion or something like that?"

"Something like that," Yang said. "Last question. Is my father with the invading forces?"

"I don't know. Swear. Torchwick only told me to kidnap you."

Yang nodded, organizing her new findings inside her head. Truly, she had only been greatly interested in her father's whereabouts. But in the lack of that information, the other things she had learned were very worthwhile.

Junior took his mug and drank the last of his beer, then turned to face Yang again. "Alright, Blondie. You got your answers. Now leave me alone."

"Aw, Junior. Why do we have to be like that to each other? I mean, I kicked your ass once. Then you kicked mine," she said. "We're even. There's no reason for us to fight anymore!"

She stood up and put some distance between them, standing closer to the center of the inn. Some savvy costumers took off right then and there, while others renewed their interest in the interaction.

"Come on," she leaned forward, her eyes shimmering playfully. "Let's kiss and make up, okay?"

Junior almost choked, looking at the princess in shock. He gave a glance to his people scattered around the inn, and every one of them – very inebriated, of course – nodded encouragingly.

"Uh, okay." Junior stood and walked up to her, leaning down slowly.

Yang flashed him a grin, then suddenly swung a fist at his face, sending him sprawling over a table and to the ground, taking two of his crew with him.

"Really, Junior? Like I'd ever make out with a jerk like you!" Yang made a disgusted expression. "Tell you what. You promise to stop harassing the people of this village, and to pay every last coin they are owed for the materials you are taking… and I won't beat the crap out of you."

Junior struggled to stand again, his face red with rage. " _GET HER_!"

At once, everyone loyal to him charged at Yang. She snickered and gave them a mock salute, then turned and ran out the door. She wasn't a coward, not all. She had provoked the fight. But she didn't want to destroy the inn and cause trouble to its owner.

She skidded to a halt at the center of the village and turned around to face the wave of goons coming at her. From the corners of her vision, she saw villagers gathering up to watch the fight about to take place. Some expressed disbelief, others were glad that she was standing up to the people who had been harassing them, and a select few didn't hesitate to declare she was doomed.

"Watch and learn," Yang whispered, and as the first goon reached her, she punched him in the stomach, making him stumble away, dizzy. Next came two at once, and she stepped around their collective attacks and jumped, kicking each of one of them in midair in quick succession.

Yang landed and skipped away from her assailants, making distance between them so she could keep all of the goons in her line of sight. All it took was one of them sneaking around her and she would find herself under a much more precarious situation, having to defend herself from two directions at once.

Doing a quick head count, she determined that there were seven men left, including Junior. Neo was hanging in the back, leaning on her thin sword, seemingly content just watching the confrontation. She could use her firebending, but with so many people watching, she preferred to keep it as a last resort.

Or at least that was the plan, before the seven of them went at her at once. "Oh, okay. Last resort it is."

In a swift movement, she spread her arms to her sides, then brought them back together in front of her. A fireball formed between her hands, and after a few seconds, a barrage of fire exploded from it, blasting directly into the charging men and knocking them away, unconscious or nearly so.

Yang braced herself as the crowd went silent. Then came a cacophony of insults and curses, all aimed at her nation, her bending, her person. She closed her eyes, trying to shut all the noise out, but it was impossible, overwhelming, her worst fear come to life.

She was about to fall to her knees, when one sly strand of laughter reached her ears. Yang opened her eyes and faced Neo, who was slowly walking towards her, flourishing her sword in front of her.

"You," Yang spoke, and Neo halted immediately, tilting her head to the side. "Come at me. See if I'll fall."

Neo smiled and dashed at her, her feet knocking dust behind her, so fast she was. Yang threw a fireball at her, but the bounty hunter changed directions, now running in circles around her. Yang kept her eyes on her, prepared for an attack at any second.

After what felt like an eternity, Neo lunged at her in a spinning motion, her sword tracing deadly slashes through the air. She was too fast for Yang to hit before being attacked herself, so the blonde dove low and rolled beneath her.

Not wasting a second, Yang stood back up and turned around, already swinging a fiery fist in her enemy's direction. The projectile flew and hit an empty spot on the ground. Neo was nowhere to be found.

Yang took a step back, utterly confused as to what had happened. No one could be _that_ fast. "What-"

"Behind you!"

Yang spun and came face to face with Neo, who was just bringing her sword down, aimed at her head. Thinking fast, Yang grabbed her by the arm and pulled her, punching her in the stomach with her free hand.

Neo gasped and stumbled back, losing her grip on her sword, which fell on the ground. Her eyes bore hatefully into Yang's, but the blonde wasn't intimidated. The firebender jumped and kicked her with all her strength, knocking the petite girl unconscious.

"Nope," Yang grinned. "Still standing."

She looked at the crowd expectantly. The curses had stopped, somewhat replaced by declarations of awe. She even caught a thank you or two, much to her surprise.

"Whoever warned me… Thanks," she said. "These people won't bother you anymore. This village is now under the protection of Yang Xiao-Long, daughter of Taiyang and Raven, princess of the Fire Nation. And that's not just me being a greedy conqueror like my mother," she raised her chin proudly. "That's a warning to anyone who even _dares_ bother you. Alright?"

Murmurs spread through the crowd, no one knowing what to make of the unexpected declaration. Yang smiled. Perhaps that hadn't been the wisest thing to do – she probably wouldn't be able to protect any place, with the turns her life liked to take– but it felt right. _This_ was who she was.

"So," she spoke up again. "Can anyone lend me a boat?"

* * *

 Ruby grumbled to herself as she sneakily followed Weiss' progress through the city, keeping to the shadows the moon couldn't shed light upon. She couldn't quite hear what Weiss and… whoever _he_ was were talking about, but she sure could hear the giggling and the _ah_ -ing and the kissing and she kinda hated herself for what she was doing.

"Why," she whispered for the tenth time that night. "Why am I here?"

She was the Avatar, for Pete's sake. She had better things to do than… stalking one of her best friends while she was on a date with her mysterious boyfriend. And she didn't even have a concrete reason for what she was doing. Every night she was doing this, and she didn't even know _why_.

"Stupid Avatar. So stupid…!"

The couple began to cross the bridge between two streets, but midway through it, they stopped and began to talk there, their silhouettes right against the silver of the moon. Ruby cursed mentally at the romantic sight, then jumped and landed on a bridge above them, careful not to make too much noise.

She listened in on their conversation for a while, but it just made her feel sick. Not because of what they were saying – although hearing Weiss being so affectionate with someone was kind of disturbing – but because of the fact that she shouldn't even be there to listen. She was doing something wrong. Extremely wrong. And she couldn't stop doing it.

Frustrated with herself, Ruby turned around and slid down the rail of the bridge and sat on the ground. Seeking to drown out the conversation, she hugged her knees and buried her face between them. It worked somewhat. At least she couldn't make out words, now.

After a few minutes, the conversation faded away. Ruby made to stand up, but before she could, a hand fell on her shoulder, and someone sat beside her.

"Avatar Ruby," Winter sighed. "You are hopeless. Care to explain yourself?"

Ruby panicked, her heart beating insanely fast inside her chest, so loud she was sure Winter was hearing it too. This was it. Surely, Winter was about to drop her as a pupil. She would probably tell Weiss what she was doing. Ruby would be lucky if she wasn't floating alone on the freezing ocean by dawn.

"Ruby," Winter put a hand on her knee. "Just say it. Were you spying on Weiss?"

"M-maybe?" Ruby squealed. "Y-yes…"

"Because you figured out she was lying to you, and you were worried she was in some manner of trouble," Winter said. "At least that was your motivation at first, right?"

"Yes…" Ruby nodded. "At first. I don't know why I'm here now. Maybe I just want to… protect her?"

"Or you want to make sure Neptune is worthy of her," Winter suggested. "You want to know _who_ is worthy of her. _What_ kind of person she wants to be with. To see if perhaps you and her…"

Winter let that hang in the air, casting a significant glance at Ruby. The young airbender had half the mind to throw herself off the bridge and into the water, but Winter would probably bend her back up, so she discarded that plan of action.

"This is embarrassing," Ruby said.

"For both of us, believe me," Winter admitted. "Do you think I go around giving romantic advice to teenagers? No. I'm doing this only because this matter is becoming a serious obstacle in your training."

"Oh, okay. That's… kind of comforting, actually," Ruby looked down at her lap, twiddling her thumbs nervously. "Maybe you're right. I might be a little jealous. But, anyway, it can't happen. _Ever_. And that's the end of that story."

"Really?" Winter frowned. "Why is that?"

Ruby pondered the question for a moment. "So, I'm the last airbender," she began. "When a man and a woman love each other very-"

Winter covered her mouth with a hand and took several deep breaths. Ruby glared at her, but was also a little glad she had intervened. Explaining the birds and the bees to her waterbending master wasn't a very exciting prospect.

"I see… unfortunately," Winter grimaced. "I wish there was something I could do or say. But I suppose you are right. You can't be with my sister."

She immediately regretted her words, noticing the almost imperceptible changes in Ruby's face that indicated how hard those words hit her.

"But…" Winter looked up, searching for help amongst the stars, even though she knew the only thing she could depend upon was herself right now. "Ruby, you are fifteen years old. You will grow. The person you are today might be a stranger one year from now. And you have seen only a fraction of what the world has to offer. Out there, you will meet new people… And perhaps one of those people will be the one for you."

"Yeah," Ruby muttered. "But it wouldn't be Weiss."

"No. But it's a start," Winter sighed. "Sometimes, Ruby, you have to compromise. Do you know what that means?"

Ruby nodded slowly. She understood what Winter was saying, but it sounded so… wrong. In the stories she had read, the stories her mother had told her, the hero always ended up with their first love. They never settled for less… unless it was a sad story.

Ruby didn't want her life to be a sad story.

"You know, Winter," Ruby said. "That was actually some pretty good advice."

"Thank you. I… speak from experience," Winter said, smiling humorlessly at Ruby's surprised reaction. "When the Grimm incident happened, Weiss wasn't the only one to receive punishment. While I wasn't banished, father did have me leave for a long while. Nowadays, I'm glad he did that. Getting to know the world… it made me who I am today," she explained. "But I met a lot of people who I had to leave behind when it came time to return. A select few were… very dear to me."

"Oh," Ruby frowned. "I'm sorry… I hope you find someone, Winter. You deserve it."

Winter patted her on the head awkwardly, then stood up. "If you wish to, you may skip training tomorrow." The stare she set on Ruby was so intense, the redhead feared she had become some sort of Grimm-person for a moment. "But don't think this will happen frequently. Or ever again."

Ruby made a little squeal and remained curled up until Winter was safely out of view.

* * *

 After the fight in the village, Junior and his crew began to act much more gently towards the islanders. Even Neo could be seen helping out a villager in their daily tasks every once in a while. The shopkeeper who was selling them materials for their ship's repair enjoyed a very profitable boom in his business.

Despite all that, not all the villagers were particularly happy about the change in their home's dynamic. Yang received more than a few dirty looks and even outright insults, but she didn't mind. She hadn't expected people to sympathize with a Fire Nation princess.

That harsh view they had of her and her people actually proved to be helpful, as one of the village's fishermen, eager to see her away from his family, decided to lend her one of his boats. It wasn't an impressive vessel by any means, but it would get her to the North Pole. Whether it would get her there fast enough was another matter altogether.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Yang asked as she stepped onto the boat, poking its mast carefully. She winced as the wood creaked under her touch. "Uhm, how old did you say this thing was again?

The fisherman, watching closely from the shore, put a finger on his chin thoughtfully. "I built it as a gift to my wife's family when we married. That was, eh… let me remember… sixteen years ago! Or was it eighteen?" He waved dismissively. "Look, I take care of this beauty as if it were one of my kids. So don't you worry about it sinking, alright?"

"Here's hoping your kids are great human beings…" Yang said under her breath. "Again, thank you! You didn't have to do this."

"I ain't gonna lie to you, girl, I don't like you all that much. I think everyone here was way better off before Avatars and Fire Nation warmongers came knocking on our doors," he said. "But you helped us. Fought against your own people. So it wouldn't feel right if I didn't offer a little help myself."

Yang smiled. "I'm just doing what's right. Or what I think is right, at least. If the Fire Nation ever bothers you again… Try to send word to a guy named Qrow. He's my uncle, and he would be more than happy to help you out."

The fisherman nodded, then walked back to the village. Yang started to turn away, but stopped when she saw someone else coming her way. To her surprise, it was Ama, carrying two heavy bags on her hands.

"I packed you some food," Ama said, offering the bags to her. "Fruits and vegetables. So you won't starve before you get where you're going."

"Thanks. I had forgotten about that!" Yang laughed. "I think you just saved my life."

"It was nothing," Ama paused, looking her up and down as if they were meeting for the first time. "Why are you going to the North Pole? Are you planning to join this awful invasion your people are orchestrating?"

"No. Just the contrary," Yang said. "I'm going to help the waterbenders and the Avatar stop them."

"I see," Ama shook her head in wonder. "A firebending princess helping the Avatar. And I thought, after all my years, I had the world all figured out. Tell me, why is it that you're on her side?"

Yang looked at the horizon, the sun rising in the distance, casting its reflection on the ocean's surface. Everything seemed so clear at that moment, every doubt that had been plaguing her mind forgotten as if they had never existed.

"You know, I always felt my mother didn't love me. Or if she did, it was because she was forcing herself to. A twisted, fake sort of love. Anything to keep up appearances," she said. "I thought I could make it real. I left my home because of it, in searching for something, _anything_ that could change the way she looked at me."

"Capturing the Avatar… is not that thing. Ruby is not a criminal, not even close. I've seen her leap into a burning building to save a single person, with no hesitation. I tried to harm her so many times, came very close to doing it, and yet she forgave me, no questions asked," Yang sighed. "She wasn't responsible for her people dying, but I bet she feels like she is. She has the weight of the world on her shoulders."

Yang turned to face Ama, her expression hardened. "So if the Fire Lord wants to make a villain of her, I will stand against her, with the Avatar," she declared. "I want my mother to see me at war, on the other side of the field. I want her to realize how wrong she is. I want her to try and earn me back."

"I want my mother to give me a reason to love _her_."

Ama just stared at her, speechless, while Yang winded down, taking deep breaths. She felt oddly peaceful, as if a huge weight had been lifted off of her.

"That was probably an unnecessarily long explanation, and totally irrelevant to your question," Yang realized. "Sorry I don't make any sense."

"No worries. I got the gist of it," Ama smiled. "I wish you good luck and safe travels. Go save the world."

"Heh. You can bet I will!" Yang exclaimed. "Bye, Ama!"

With that, she unknotted the rope tethering the boat to the beach, opened the sails, and let the wind carry her away, bound north.

* * *

 Despite Winter's generous offer of skipping a day of training, Ruby decided to go anyway. She figured Winter would be disappointed if she didn't show up, even if she had been given expressed consent from the master herself. And she was always eager to earn points with the older waterbender.

Halfway to the training grounds, Ruby heard footsteps approaching her quickly from behind, and she turned around briefly, just to make sure she wasn't about to be assaulted by a surprise Fire Nation attack or something. With her luck, anything was possible.

To her simultaneous surprise and dismay, it was Weiss. The princess caught up to her and started walking beside her with a little smile on her lips. "Good morning, Ruby."

"G-good morning, Weiss," Ruby stammered. "You look happy today."

"What do you mean? Don't I always look happy?" Weiss frowned. "But, yes, I am happy. Quite happy. For reasons I've regrettably been keeping from you for a while now. I'm sorry about that. I just wanted to make sure I was understanding the situation correctly, and…" She blushed. "I didn't want you to think I was some kind of… obsessed, lovesick, airheaded…"

"Hey, you said it, not me," Ruby interrupted, smiling slightly. "Why would I think that?"

"I have a… a… How do I put this?" Weiss bit her lip, deep in thought. "He's not my boyfriend. More of a… _potential_ candidate for a boyfriend."

"So… a crush?" Ruby offered, a little numb to the fact that she was having this talk with Weiss.

"Maybe. He also has a crush on me, though. So I'm not sure that's correct," Weiss shook her head. "Anyway. His name's Neptune. I used to kind of hate him before I left, but ten years have passed, and with us reconnecting… W-well…"

Ruby, noticing Weiss wasn't going to finish that thought, started to panic. What was she supposed to do, complete Weiss' words? It would feel awful. As usual, she was presented with heart wrenching situations one after the next.

Looking at Weiss again, however, she realized that her friend was clearly having a much harder time with the conversation. Ruby promptly took hold of all her feelings, tossed them all aside, and squeezed Weiss' shoulder.

"I'm happy for you, Weiss. You're super awesome, and it's even more awesome that you have someone. Or, uh, potentially have someone," she cleared her throat. "You get my meaning."

"Yes. Thank you, Ruby. I felt so silly telling you about this, but now I see I should have done much sooner," Weiss said. "You are… awesome, too."

"We all knew that already," Ruby pointed out. Suddenly, her face grew much serious, and she leaned closer to Weiss. "I wanna meet this Neptune, and if he turns out to not be half as awesome as you make him sound, it's over between you two. Okay?"

Weiss stopped walking, a conflicted expression on her face. "Okay," she smiled. "What would I be without you, Ruby?"

"Less stressed, probably," Ruby shrugged. "Hey. Wanna skip training? Winter gave me permission to."

"She didn't allow any such luxury, though."

"Eh…" Ruby contemplated the quandary for a moment, then shrugged. "Winter will understand. You and me, we're a package deal."

"I suppose we are," Weiss rolled her eyes, but her smile remained. "Well, then… show me where the fun is, Avatar."


	19. The Siege of the North Pole

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Nineteen: The Siege of the North Pole**

* * *

In the northernmost corner of Remnant's ocean, a fleet of Fire Nation ships advanced at a smooth speed, gliding over the waves making barely any noise. The darkness of the night concealed their presence, but they would only arrive after the sun came up and all the northerners were awake. General Roman Torchwick didn't mind, though – in fact, he was all the happier for the challenge.

He stood on the prow of the leading battleship with his hands crossed behind his back. It was one of the very rare occasions when he could be seen with neither his cane nor his tophat. But he still wore his usual smug smile.

Taiyang, who stood beside him, was not happy at all. For every day he had spent traveling with Roman, he had showed nothing but contempt for his current situation. Roman found it a tad annoying. He hadn't _forced_ Taiyang to come along with him. Their temporary partnership was for their mutual benefit – if the disgraced royal consort didn't like it, he should have stayed behind.

"You look anxious," Roman remarked, casting a sly glance at his moody companion. "Getting nervous about going to war again, after all this time?"

"No. The only wars I've ever fought in were against Grimm," Taiyang said, leaning against the rails of the ship. Roman couldn't see his eyes, but he had a feeling they weren't very kind right now. "We're not supposed to fight each other."

"Well, _we_ are not the Water Tribe, or the Earth Kingdom, if you're going that far," Roman shrugged. "You should bring this up to your wife if it bothers you so much."

"You think I haven't done that already?" Taiyang scoffed. "Never mind. We're not buddies, Torchwick, and I have no interest in arguing with you about war. Let's talk about this little invasion of yours instead." He stood straight and turned to Roman. "At the speed we're going, we still have half a day of travel ahead of us. How do you plan to attack the Water Tribe in plain daylight? Their waterbenders will be free to attack us at a distance."

"Who said we'll arrive in plain daylight?" Roman chuckled. "Let's say I have friends on the inside who will help us. Those snow-brained fools will never see us coming. We'll have broken through their walls and downed half their forces by the time they realize what's happening."

"You sound awfully sure of yourself. I would be more careful," Taiyang smiled humorlessly. "Get too confident, and it might be you who gets caught off guard. Just a piece of advice."

Roman's face soured. The last thing he needed from Taiyang was advice, and he didn't like the tone he was using right now. The threat underlying the consort's words couldn't be less subtle.

"Anyway," Taiyang turned away. "Just remember, I'm not here because I want to help you. I'm here to find my daughter. I do that, then I'm out. Your trouble's yours."

"Yes, yes," Roman grunted in frustration. "And I'm _sure_ the Fire Lord will be happy to know that."

Taiyang paused for a moment, then walked away, leaving Torchwick by himself to wait for the beginning of the invasion.

* * *

Ruby slid to a halt on the icy floor of the training grounds and waved her hand in front of her face, dispersing some of the fog clouding her vision. She could still see Weiss standing a few meters ahead of her in her battle stance, and Jaune and Neptune siting on some steps nearby, watching them, but the weather was starting to annoy her.

On the other hand, Weiss didn't seem bothered at all. She hadn't said a word throughout their sparring match, and neither had she made a single mistake, which resulted in a hopeless trashing for Ruby. The redhead was pretty sure Weiss was only doing that to show off to Neptune, which only added to the world of hurt she was in.

Ruby's brief moment of distraction was immediately punished by a water whip to the forehead, which sent her sprawling backwards on the ice. She hissed and shook her arms helplessly, like a chicken trying to take flight, then fell to the ground, sticking her tongue out comically. Jaune winced, while Neptune just stared, mortified.

"Come on, Ruby," Weiss called out, her voice oddly sweet, like an adult talking to a child. "It wasn't that bad. Stand up!"

"Bleh," Ruby reached up weakly with a hand. "I call for a time out."

"What? We've barely started!" Weiss protested.

"Uhm, you two have been at it for twenty minutes," Jaune pointed out.

"Oh, really? I didn't even notice!" Weiss turned to the boys with a charming smile. "I barely broke a sweat, after all!"

Jaune was unimpressed, but Neptune nodded enthusiastically. "You were amazing, Weiss! I mean, you made the freaking _Avatar_ look like nothing!" He paused, his eyes widening. "No offense, Ruby. You were great too."

Ruby rose to her feet and walked to them "None taken," she said. "This fog's so annoying, though. I would have been able to do more if it weren't for it."

"It didn't hinder me at all." Weiss stated promptly. Ruby glared at the back of her head intensely.

Neptune looked up at the sky and frowned. The weather had been like this ever since the sun came up, but it was getting worse by the minute. What had once been a thin layer of fog in the air was now becoming a real hindrance. From the edge of the training grounds and onwards, he couldn't see anything.

"It is strange, though," he noted. "There is _some_ fog here every once in a while, but it's rarely noticeable. This, however…"

"Hmm. You're right," Weiss said. "Winter thought the fog was strange too. Hopefully she'll find out what's behind it. Then we can get back to teaching Ruby how to be a real waterbender. No offense meant, of course."

Ruby opened her mouth to say that, once again, she wasn't offended, but then realized that remark _did_ offend her. Before she could say anything, though, Jaune jumped to his feet and patted her on the back.

"Sshh. Just let her be," he whispered. "I'm waiting for the moment she realizes she's acting just like me when I'm around girls. It'll be humiliating."

"Wow. That is mean," Ruby frowned. "And kinda harsh on yourself, too. You, uh, doing okay, Jaune?"

"Always, Ruby," Jaune said slowly. " _Always_."

* * *

Yang steered her boat with caution, her eyes narrowed as she tried to see through the heavy fog surrounding her. She could hear the not-so-distant sound of battleship engines, and there was a faint smell of tar and smoke in the air. While she couldn't confirm it, she was pretty sure she was right next to Torchwick's fleet.

Now that she was there, at the gates of the North Pole, she was at a loss of what to do next. Did she wait for the invasion to start? Did she try and sneak onto one of the battleships, maybe find Torchwick, perhaps her father? Or she could warn the Water Tribe of what was about to happen. If the Avatar was there to listen, they might just believe her.

Her choice was taken away from her when she looked up and saw the blinding flare of a flaming rock streak through the air, dispersing the fog around it. It struck the first wall guarding the North Pole, and the structure came tumbling down, taking more than a few silhouettes along with it.

All at once, the Fire Nation fleet came to life around Yang, advancing at top speed onwards. She hastily moved her boat away from the path of one of the battleships, then stood up, closing her fists.

It was too late to stop the invasion before it started. The only thing to do, then, was fight.

* * *

The fog the North Pole had been immersed in since dawn was now mixed with smoke and the icy releases of the crumbled first wall. The impact of the Fire Nation's opening projectile caused the ocean to rise in unruly waves, which took many of the watchmen who hadn't been knocked out in the first place.

Winter gasped as she emerged from the surface, reaching up to hold onto the shattering floor on the perimeters of the city. She rolled up out of the water and stood. A quick glance over her shoulder revealed the forms of dozens of battleships approaching fast, as well as spirals of fire headed straight in her direction.

Clearing her mind, she brought her hands up in a swift movement, blocking the flames with a wall of water. Thinking fast, she froze the water into a solid structure, giving her temporary cover to assess the situation.

She could see some of the watchmen which had fallen from the wall were still up, spread around her and regaining their senses. They were doing their best to protect themselves and the next wall from the incoming projectiles, but Winter knew that would only be a momentary obstacle for the Fire Nation.

"Everyone!" she screamed as loud as possible over the noise of the ships. "The walls are doomed! Fall back to the city and regroup!"

As they obeyed her orders and retreated, Winter called upon the ocean once again and sent a massive wave against the approaching ships. The vessels at the front slowed down somewhat, wobbling dangerously, but stayed upright. Winter grunted and blew a strand of hair away from her eye, then took a deep breath, recognizing she was losing her focus. If that happened, they would have an even bigger problem than the Fire Nation.

She turned and ran as fast as possible, dodging the fireballs falling around her and blocking the ones that threatened to hit the group ahead of her. As they approached the wall, Winter opened a small hole in it at ground level so everyone could pass. As soon as everyone, including herself, was at the other side, she closed it.

The fog had lessened somewhat, making it possible for Winter to see the city in front of her. Pretty much every soldier in the North Pole was already gathered there, and her father was shouting orders at them. Civilians were watching and muttering amongst themselves, terrified and confused about what was happening. Winter shook her head, thinking that wasn't a good sign of things to come.

"Sister!" Winter turned to see Weiss walking towards her, accompanied by Ruby, Jaune and Neptune. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"I'm fine. A little out of breath, but uninjured," Winter said. "My investigation on the source of the fog led me to the outer wall, but just as I was reaching a conclusion, the floor fell below me. Nobody could have seen the attack coming. I fear many are dead, or captured."

"So it's true," Ruby muttered, wide eyes fixed on the ground. "The Fire Nation is attacking."

"Unless the Earth Kingdom built a fifty-large fleet in absolute secrecy, yes," Winter sighed. "Excuse me. Father will need my help coordinating the defense. Weiss, Ruby, we could use your help too. Neptune and…" Her eyes blanked as she looked at Jaune. "Ahem. You two should join the soldiers."

"Yes, ma'am!" Neptune nodded resolutely.

"We'll do whatever is necessary," Jaune agreed.

"As long as it doesn't involve swimming," Neptune added in a small voice.

Jaune turned to look at him. "…What?"

"What do you mean what?" Neptune blinked. "I didn't say anything."

The boys and Winter walked away, while Weiss stayed behind, looking worriedly at Ruby, who hadn't made a sound since learning about the attack. Hesitantly, the princess touched her shoulder, and Ruby looked up at her with teary eyes.

"Ruby," Weiss muttered. "It's okay. We're gonna turn this around."

"This is all my fault," Ruby said. "You should have given me over when you had the chance. Now Torchwick's here and people are dead."

"Ruby, it's not your fault. This battle has been a long time coming. We couldn't have avoided it forever," Weiss stated, her eyes narrowing. "And don't you question my decisions. I chose to stand by your side when Torchwick wanted to take you, and I would never – _never_ \- change that decision. I'll always be by your side, okay?"

Ruby closed her eyes for a long time, and she opened them again, they were clear of tears and full of purpose. "I know. Thanks, Weiss," she said seriously, grabbing her staff from her back. "Since I'm here, I'm going to make myself useful. This battle has to end _now_."

Before Weiss could say anything, Ruby turned away and flew up into the air and over the wall. Weiss shook her head, then smiled slightly and went to find her family.

* * *

Roman growled as he watched another one of his fleet's projectiles get blocked by the North Pole's waterbenders, keeping the city's inner and only remaining wall intact. Somehow, his enemies had regrouped fast enough to mount an effective defense to his opening attack. It was frustrating, but even more frustrating was seeing Taiyang's smug smile at the corner of his vision.

"You know, instead of standing there looking all high and mighty, you could maybe give some suggestions!" Roman said impatiently.

"Sure. That doesn't sound half as fun, though," Taiyang shrugged. "Have you tried using bigger fireballs?"

"You idiot!" Roman yelled, finally losing his cool. "Aren't you here to rescue your daughter? You too need to enter that city!"

"Do I?" Taiyang said, his voice completely serious. He turned and looked Roman straight in the eyes. "Please, do take the question seriously. _Do I_?"

Roman straightened up and opened his hand by his side, about to prepare a fireball, while watching the consort very carefully. He could tell Taiyang was just as ready to fight as he was.

Before any of them could make a move, though, a rush of wind hit them and everyone else on the deck of their ship. With a resounding noise, Ruby landed on the mast, several meters above them.

"General Torchwick! This is the Avatar speaking!" she shouted. "The North Pole has stopped your attack, and they're willing to let you retreat unharmed, even if you're a massive jerk and a killer! Turn around and never come back!"

"Strong words, Red!" Roman yelled back. "Since when do you speak for the waterbenders?"

"Since I found out I have the duty to defend them," Ruby replied, jumping off the mast and landing in front of him. "Go. Before more people get hurt."

Roman stared at her in silence, momentarily stunned by how determined she looked. He almost wanted to obey, but he grinned nonetheless and walked closer to her, so her nose was almost touching his chest.

"Really, Red," he said, looking down at her. "Remember what happened the last time you boarded my ship?"

"Yeah. I do, actually," she smiled. "I almost broke it in half and left you stranded in the middle of the ocean."

Roman laughed, and without warning, swung a flaming fist towards Ruby's face. The redhead ducked below it and glided back, spinning her staff in her hands with a pleased expression on her face.

"Not falling for the old tricks anymore, I see!" he said. "Oh, they grow up so fast…"

He launched a fireball at her, but Ruby jumped over it and, in the same movement, closed in on him, swinging her staff at him. Torchwick blocked with his arms and tried to kick her, but a rush of wind propelled her around him.

The next staff hit landed neatly on the small of his back, sending him sprawling forward, hissing in pain. Roman didn't let the pain get to him, though, and turned to launch a barrage of fire at her, not stopping for an instant. His shipmen had to run away and find cover to hide behind, while Taiyang just watched in mild amusement, diverting any attacks headed towards him with slight gestures.

Ruby weaved between the flames, her skin heating up as she got dangerously close to being hit. It was either by extraneous effort from her or a miracle that her cloak wasn't set on fire. But while she could keep dodging forever and wait for Torchwick to get tired, she would rather find a way to stop him early and save her energy for the rest of the battle.

She was fast enough to launch a wind attack at him, and while it would make him stop to dodge, he would certainly see it coming, and knowing how much of a jerk he was, he would just start throwing fire at her again. So, she needed something unexpected. Something he had never seen her do before…

"You thirsty?!"" she yelled, jumping back on her feet.

While Roman stopped for a split second to look incredulously at her, Ruby felt the ocean at the bottom of the ship and called on it. A moment later, a whip of water came up from the side and whipped him behind the head, knocking him to the ground.

While Taiyang laughed, Ruby jumped towards Torchwick and kicked him in the shoulder. Roman got to his knees and looked up at her, grimacing.

"Low blow, Red," he said. "Both the sneak attack and the kick. Also, that might have been the worst one-liner I've ever heard."

"You would do the same," Ruby frowned. "I'm just playing by your rules."

"You know, I used to find it funny, but now…" Roman grinned humorlessly. "Now it's just sad." Seeing Ruby's confused expression, he just shook his head. "How innocent you are. You ever ask yourself… What are you doing? Because it looks to me like you're fighting a war. Except you want everything to be flowers and rainbows. You can't even knock me unconscious, can you? Me, a killer," he paused. "I wonder what you would do if you came face to face with the Fire Lord."

Ruby took a step back, lowing her staff. Her hands shaking, eyes wide - she was completely out of the moment, and Roman took that brief opportunity to execute his desperate plan.

Searching through the pocket of his coat, he retrieved a tiny black crystal and jumped up, then threw it at the ground between them. Ruby looked at him in confusion, then in shock as the crystal shattered and tendrils of darkness started to whip around in the air.

The darkness started to converge into a single spot, forming a shivering mass that only got bigger with time, then started to contort into a bird-like shape. Red started to shine inside it, and the next thing Ruby knew, she was staring at two malicious red eyes right in front of her.

"Watch out!" Taiyang yelled, tackling her away from the Grimm. The bird snapped its beak forward, closing it where her head had been a second before.

Ruby watched in horror as the Nevermore spun around, orientating itself, then set its eyes on the distant wall, which was still being bombarded. With a screech, the beast took flight towards the city, casting a gigantic shadow on the ice and the ocean below it.

Not wasting a second, Ruby jumped off the ship and glided after the Grimm. Taiyang turned and marched towards Torchwick, his face contorted in fury. "Roman! You've gone too far!" he shouted. "I always knew you were a maniac, but this? _Summoning Grimm_?! You're a monster!"

Torchwick cracked his neck and took off his coat, then threw it aside. "Think whatever you like. But at least I get the job done, which is more than I can say about you!"

Taiyang roared and leaped towards him, his whole body radiating fire. Roman gasped and dove to the side, barely avoiding the brutal attack. " _GET HIM_!"

His crew came out of hiding, briefly hesitating to even approach their flaming opponent, but memories of disobeying their boss and the punishment that came with that sprung them to action. As one, they all tackled Taiyang, who fought back fiercely, knocking some of them away and knocking out others.

While Taiyang was distracted, Roman spat and retrieved his cane, which had been resting against a nearby wall, and approached him. With a mighty swing, Roman struck Taiyang in the head, knocking him out.

"I'm not a monster. I'm just not afraid of playing dirty every once in a while… or always," he said, then gestured to his men. "Take him down to the ice and drown him. We'll take back his body to be buried by the Fire Lord. Such a shame that the waterbenders overwhelmed him!"

* * *

When the Nevermore took flight from Torchwick's ship and came directly towards the wall, Winter immediately knew what was about to happen. She yelled for her fellow waterbenders to fall back, but that wasn't fast enough, and two of them were snatched by the Grimm's talons and dropped from the wall.

"Jump off!" she ordered. "We're easy pickings from here! Let them come to us!"

Once everybody else was on the ground, Winter jumped off, landing beside Weiss. The sisters looked up at the Nevermore, which flew past them and farther into the city, where the civilians was hiding in fear. A red streak followed the monster closely.

"Ruby's on it!" Weiss yelled. "We need to help her!"

"Go! I can manage by myself," Winter said. "But be careful, sister."

Weiss nodded and ran off. Jaune and Neptune broke from the rest of the soldiers and went after her at her call. Winter shook her head in disapproval, but let them go anyway.

A flaming chunk of rock hit the wall, tearing a hole in it and making it crumble to pieces. The air was filled with dust, obscuring the view of the water. Winter squinted, trying to make out anything in the distance, but it was impossible.

"…Are they coming?" a soldier whispered nearby.

"Maybe they freaked out about that bird and ran."

"Can anyone see anything? This stupid fog…"

Winter blinked, only then realizing that it wasn't only the dust from the wall limiting her vision, but also the same fog from before, except much stronger. She clenched his fists in rage. This confirmed her earlier suspicion that the fog was a ploy from the Fire Nation, and that there was a traitor amongst them. Worst of all, to achieve such a feat, this traitor would have to be a waterbender, and a skillful one at that.

"Listen up!" She turned her head to look at her soldiers. "I want a group of ten searching this area. Look for suspicious behavior – anyone you don't recognize. Be warned, they are most likely waterbenders. If you encounter the suspects-"

Pain flared on the back of her head, and she stumbled forward, the world spinning around her. Winter spun and saw two identical women stepping towards her, one wearing a blue tunic, the other a red one. A ring of water flowed around them, discouraging any attacks by the surrounding soldiers.

"There she is. The famous Grandmaster," the one in blue sighed contemptuously. "Frankly, Melanie, I expected much more."

"Nobody is perfect, Miltia," the one in red shrugged. "I guess we'll just have to content ourselves with her."

Winter raised a hand to strike, but stopped herself, noticing how angry she was. She took a brief moment to recompose her, then spoke. "You are outnumbered and outclassed. Not only that, you're making humiliating you a very tempting prospect," she said calmly. "Surrender now, and that won't have to happen. This is your only warning."

"Wow. Rude," Miltia scoffed. "Let's teach her a lesson."

"You said it, sister," Melanie agreed.

Winter gestured at the snow at her feet, gathering ammunition for her unexpected battle. Behind her, dozens of battleships sounded their horns, and the clinking of steel boots and weapons came closer and closer.

It was time for the first clash between the Water Tribe and the Fire Nation.

* * *

The Nevermore landed on a street in the center of the city, chasing after a couple of civilians who hadn't yet found a safe place to hide. The enormous bird stretched out its neck and opened its beak, gaining distance on the humans at an alarming rate.

Just before it got what would have been a very satisfactory meal, Ruby dropped from the sky and tackled the Nevermore from the side. She wasn't strong or big enough to hurt the Grimm, but her speed proved sufficient to make it stumble and hit its head against a building, disorientating it for a moment.

Ruby activated the blade on her staff and jumped, aiming a slash at the monster's neck, but it regained its senses and headbutted her, knocking her to the ground. The ice shattered on impact, and her bones creaked in protest, but Ruby stood back up and stepped to the side, barely avoiding being caught in the Nevermore's beak.

She slashed again, but the Grimm retreated and jumped away, landing on top of a house. It looked down at her and screeched, as if taunting her. Ruby grunted and leaped after him, propelling herself faster with her airbending, but the Nevermore simply flew to another rooftop and squawked at her.

"Gah!" Ruby exclaimed in frustration. "You're almost as much of a jerk as the jerk who created you! Come on, where's your tophat?"

The bird screeched and flew at her, slamming her with a talon. Breathless, Ruby tried to redirect her trajectory as she soared through the air, but a lamppost appeared on her way, breaking her speed and sending her plummeting down.

Ruby got to her knees and looked up, meeting eyes with a very, very hungry Grimm. Ears ringing, she tried to stand, but it was no use – the impact of hitting the post had hurt too much was just too much.

The Nevermore shook his wings, and several feathers came flying in her direction, gleaming like blades. Ruby gulped and began to gather her strength for a desperate attempt to dodge.

Suddenly, a wall of ice rose in front of her. The feathers embedded in it harmlessly. Ruby sighed in relief, then was pulled to her feet by none other than Weiss.

"I knew you'd get into trouble," the princess said matter-of-factly.

"I mean… Look around," Ruby shrugged. "That wasn't a very bold prediction."

"True. Would you care to tell me how a Nevermore appeared in the North Pole, of all places?" Weiss asked.

"Torchwick made it, or something," Ruby gulped. "I don't know. It was all kinds of messed up. Can we talk about it later?"

"Sure," Weiss said. "Oh, here comes the backup. And Jaune."

Jaune and Neptune appeared around the corner, running at top speed. Jaune jumped and half-turned at the sight of the Nevermore, but regained his courage and started running again.

"Yo!" Neptune whistled, sliding to a halt beside them. "I've never seen anything that big in my life! How are we supposed to kill it?"

"With a clear mind. Which sucks. Unless you want it to reform in a couple of hours. Which would suck a lot more," Ruby replied.

"Sounds complicated," Neptune smiled, turning his gaze to Weiss. "But I kinda like complicated."

Weiss blushed, while Jaune nodded approvingly. Even Ruby had to admit that was a very smooth move on Neptune's part.

That brief moment of calm was interrupted when the Nevermore screeched and took off the rooftop, diving at them fast. Jaune grabbed Ruby and jumped out of the way. Neptune also dodged, but Weiss ducked and aimed an attack, slashing at the bird with water from her waterskin, cutting a deep gash on its flesh.

The Nevermore rose and began to fly in circles above them, its eyes focused on the tiny humans predatorily. Neptune shuddered. "Yeesh. It looks almost… intelligent. Like it's making a plan on how to eat us."

"Speaking of plans, we need one, and fast," Weiss said. "Jaune?"

"Huh?" Jaune jumped slightly at hearing his name. "You want me to make a plan?"

"No, I want you to learn Grimm squawking and arrange a truce with that giant bird," Weiss rolled her eyes. "Yes, I want you to make a plan!"

"Uhm, uh, o-okay!" Jaune took a step back and rubbed the back of his neck as he watched their flying enemy. "Alright. Obviously, we're not gonna get him all the way up there, so we're gonna need to find a way to keep him on the ground. Weiss, can you freeze it?"

"Probably," Weiss nodded. "But I'll need it to be stopped, or at least slowed down."

"Alright. That where's you…" Jaune pointed at Neptune. "…and me come in! The Nevermore's probably gonna try to snatch one of us again, and when it does, we attack it!"

"Like…" Neptune began to say, retrieving a trident almost as big as he was from behind his back. "With this thing?"

Jaune looked down at his own old sword. "…Yes. Like with that thing. Just stab it good."

"Stabbing things is my specialty!" Neptune flashed him a dazzling smile. "…Wait, that sounded kinda messed-"

"Then Ruby does her thing," Jaune finished. "You _can_ do your thing, right, Ruby?"

"Sure," Ruby said, stretching her arms above her head. "I'm better now."

"Okay!" Jaune exclaimed. "Then get ready for-"

The Nevermore screeched and dove at them, even faster this time. Ruby skipped out of its way, while Weiss prepared the water necessary for her part of the plan.

Just as the Grimm came parallel to the ground, Jaune and Neptune jumped as high as they could, swinging their weapons. Jaune's attempt was rather dismal, his sword glancing off the bird's skin at an awkward angle, and he was knocked back down.

Neptune, however, managed to stab all three of his trident's blades into the Nevermore's shoulder, all the way to the hilt. The creature slid on the ground and made a horrible pained noise just before crashing against a house. It stood on its talons and shook its whole body, turning Neptune into a screaming ragdoll. After a while, his grip on the trident faltered, and Neptune was launched away and into the canal between the streets.

"Now, Weiss!" Jaune screamed.

"On it!" Weiss exclaimed, striking the Nevermore's chest with a torrent of water, pressing it against the house. Then, she froze the water, trapping the beast behind layers upon layers of thick ice.

"My turn!" Ruby jumped and hovered in the air for a moment. The wind gathered around her, then behind her, spinning faster and faster, until it exploded, launching her lightning-fast at the Nevermore.

Closing her eyes, Ruby held out her scythe again and slashed. She felt a brief resistance slow her down, then moved again and landed on the rooftop of the damaged house. She opened her eyes just in time to see the beheaded Nevermore fade to smoke behind her.

"Woo! Nice job, Ruby!" Jaune yelled, raising a hand triumphantly. "That was awesome!"

"Not entirely unexpected, but an excellent job by all of us!" Weiss agreed, then looked around confusedly. "Wait. Where did Neptune go?"

"I'm pretty sure he fell in the water." Jaune said.

"What?!" Weiss' eyes widened. "Oh, no! He can't swim! We have to-"

Before Weiss could even finish her sentence, Ruby jumped from the house, speeding through the air and into the water in a matter of seconds. She disappeared below the surface for almost a full minute, during which Weiss and Jaune waited in growing panic. Then, she resurfaced, carrying a gasping Neptune over her shoulder.

Hurriedly, Weiss took Neptune from her arms and laid him down on the street. His skin was deathly pale and he wouldn't stop shivering, but otherwise, he didn't look seriously affected by the incident.

"Dude," Jaune was the first one to speak up, and he did it with a somewhat judgmental tone of voice, which was unusual for him. "You can't swim. And you live in the North Pole."

"I can explain!" Neptune yelled, lifting a hand. A few seconds later, he brought it back down. "Actually, I can't."

"He's…" Weiss started to say. "…special."

Neptune covered his face with his hands and mumbled something unintelligible. Weiss just patted him on the shoulder and turned away to face an eerily familiar sight.

Ruby had climbed back to the street, and was now on her knees, hunched forward, her eyes wide and focused on nothing in particular. She was still, except for the ever so slight rising and falling of her chest, but Weiss felt that, at a moment's notice, she could demolish everything around her with barely any effort.

Weiss gasped, causing Jaune to look and also notice Ruby's state. He took a step towards her, slowly raising his hands, afraid of alarming her with quick movements.

"Ruby?" he called hesitantly. "Uhm… Are you there? We're with you, you know. Neptune's okay. Everything's okay. No need to go all glowy and stuff."

"Jaune. Shut up," Weiss whispered, her eyes watering. "It's about to happen again. Don't you realize?"

"…Oh, crap."

All at once, dozens of deafening roars echoed throughout the city, followed by the splashing of massive waves and human yells of fear. Shadows sped past them just below the surface of the water, headed straight towards the battle at the waterfront.

Weiss fell to her knees, covering her mouth in terror. Suddenly, she felt like a little girl again, facing her worst nightmare, except now, she had the maturity to understand exactly what was happening, and was all the more terrified because of it.

She was about to give up and lie down, when a hand fell on her shoulder and brought her back up to her feet. Weiss turned and came face to face with Jaune, who was wearing the most serious expression she had ever seen on him.

"Listen up, everyone! We can't just stand around doing nothing!" he said. "Weiss! Get back to the wall and help out Winter with whatever's happening there! Neptune is in no condition to fight, so I'll take him somewhere safe, then join back with you. And Ruby!" He pointed a finger at the redhead. "You're the Avatar! Get to slaying Grimm already!"

Ruby snapped from her trance and stared at him in surprise for a moment, then saluted stiffly. "Yes, sir!" She turned around and jumped, gliding away on her staff.

Weiss closed her eyes for a moment, composing herself, then glared at him. "Don't expect me to take orders from you ever again, Jaune… But… Thanks." Without another word, she sprinted away, already gathering water for the coming fight.

Once the girls were out of sight, Jaune released his pent-up breath and stumbled towards Neptune. The boy on the ground nodded slowly. "You know, Jaune, you're way less lame than I thought you were."

"Thanks! Not a lot of people say that about me," Jaune said. "But seriously, dude. _You can't swim_?"

* * *

Back at the waterfront, two Fire Nation soldiers dragged the unconscious ex-general Taiyang with his arms around their shoulders, while a third one led the way, shaking a torch in front of himself to cut a path through the fog.

They could still hear the noise coming from the battle past the fallen walls, but they didn't give that much mind, knowing it was unlikely that any Water Tribe people could come across them. What did terrify them, though, was the growl that had begun to haunt them for the past minutes, its bestial owner but a shadow in the fog, at times barely visible in the distance, other times, skulking at an arm's length.

"Damnit, you two! Hurry up!" the soldier with the torch yelled, jumping at another sight of their predator. "That thing is looking straight at me, I swear!"

"You wanna carry him, you jerk?" one of soldiers carrying Taiyang shouted back. "He's heavier than he looks! Seriously, how much does this guy eat?"

"We could just drop him," the other carrier muttered. "Nobody would know otherwise."

His companion shook his head fervently. "No we can't, you idiot! We all heard the General – we're supposed to make it look like this guy got killed by waterbenders, then bring him back. If we don't, Torchwick's gonna have our heads."

"Well, maybe we could just-"

"T-this is too much!" the one in front exclaimed, dropping his torch. "I'm getting outta here!"

He turned to run, and in that brief moment, the Grimm finally came out of the fog, a huge bear-like creature, and knocked him out with one swoop of its left arm. The other soldiers screeched and turned right around, but the Grimm caught up to them and took one of them, dragging him into the fog.

The last soldier dropped Taiyang, looked at him guiltily for a moment, then sprinted away. Not long after, his voice rose and fell in a scream of pure terror.

Finally, the Ursa Major returned to sniff the unconscious Taiyang, as if to learn whether he was worth the time it took to eat him. After a few seconds of that, it took a step back and smiled with its sharp teeth, then raised its claws above its heads in preparation…

Suddenly, a burst of fire came from the fog, hitting the Grimm right in the back of the head. It howled in pain and turned around, only to have its face collide with a flaming fist.

"Leave my father alone, you overgrown hairball!" Yang shouted, kicking the Ursa further away, then landed on both her feet and thrust out a hand, releasing a massive barrage of fire all at once. The Grimm crossed its arms in front of its face, but the resistance lasted little, and soon all that remained of the monster were its fading ashes.

Yang let out a sigh of relief and knelt by her father's side. She had gone running through the fog as soon as she's learned about Torchwick's orders – by some not so gentle means of investigation – but if she had been a second late, he would most probably be dead right now.

"For once, things worked out fine for us. Relatively speaking," she muttered, then shook Taiyang by his shoulders. "Hey! Wake up, you oaf!"

He mumbled something and turned his head away. Yang rolled her eyes, then without a second's hesitation, slapped him in the face. He yelled and sat up, staring at her as if she was a madwoman.

"Are you crazy?!" he asked. "I was just hit in the head with a cane! You want me to get brain damage?!"

"Oh, please!" Yang shot right back. "Like you already don't have some!"

"That's true, but still…!" Taiyang eased up, and as if for the first time, looked at her. All of a sudden, there was a smile on his lips, and he lunged forward to hug her. "Yang! I knew you were okay. I just knew! But I was still so worried…"

Yang hugged him back, tearing up a bit. "Yeah. I was worried about you too," she said. "I didn't know where you were, but I guessed you wouldn't leave Torchwick alone with his crazy schemes."

"That's right. He told me the Water Tribe had kidnapped you, but I knew he was trying to trick me. For such an accomplished crook, Torchwick sure doesn't lie very well," Taiyang said. "I would have gone looking for you, but, as you said… He's a madman. He summoned a Grimm and set it loose on the North Pole, like it was a weapon… One that doesn't know to distinguish between its targets."

"Crap. It's worse than I thought," Yang rose to her feet. "He wants the Avatar, right? We have to stop him before he gets to her."

Taiyang looked up at her, his eyes filled with pride. "Yes. Lead the way, Dragonling."

Yang appeared very annoyed for a second, but then she smiled and shook her head slightly. "This is a very emotional moment, so I'll forgive you the nickname. But we gotta stay focused. Are you ready to save the day, Dad?"

She offered him a hand, and he took it immediately and stood up.

"I've never been readier."

* * *

Jaune grunted, drawing the blade of his sword out of a Beowolf as it turned to smoke. This wasn't the first Grimm he had encountered since he had left Neptune with the chieftain and his advisors at the palace, and he was certain it wouldn't be the last. At this rate, he would never make it back to the fight to help out against the Fire Nation. But at least he was making sure no civilians would get hurt, and so far, there had been no threats too big for him to handle.

As soon as he had that thought, the universe – as it always did – decided he'd had his fill of good for the day, and a gigantic eel emerged from the water beside him, extending its head far above the height of the buildings surrounding them. Jaune gulped, sheathed his sword, and got to running as fast as he could.

The Grimm screeched and chased after him, swimming along on the canals, trying to close its fangs around him. With each passing second, it got closer, while Jaune tired and slowed down. If nothing changed, he would soon have a cozy new home inside the creature's stomach.

Just as the Grimm was about to eat him up, the universe changed its mind, and a set of stairs appeared before Jaune, leading to an elevated area far from the canals. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Jaune jumped up the steps two at a time, until he was at the end of them, and out of the eel's reach.

"Hah!" He looked down at the Grimm and stuck his tongue out. "Who's the boss now, eh?"

The Grimm glared at him, then slowly came out of the water, its whole body sliding onto the street. Jaune put his hands on his head and groaned.

"Oh, come on!" he whined. "What are you gonna do next, grow wings?"

The eel slithered towards him, ascending the steps alarmingly fast for an underwater creature. Realizing there was no chance of running away, Jaune drew his sword and held it in front of himself. The Grimm lunged at him, opening its mouth wide, and he closed his eyes.

A moment later, there was the sound of flesh being sliced, followed by a heavy thud. Jaune opened his eyes and saw the eel fallen in front of him, its head severed from the rest of its body. As it turned to smoke, Ruby appeared, resting her scythe on her shoulder with a weary expression on her face.

"Ruby! Have I ever mentioned how much I love you?" Jaune exclaimed. A moment later, he blinked and raised a finger. "In a strictly platonic manner, of course."

"Yep. Love you too," she said, wiping sweat off her forehead. "Jaune… I don't think I can keep going. Nothing I do is helping. The Grimm… With the battle going on, they're showing up faster than I can kill them. It's useless. _I'm_ useless."

"My currently alive self would like to disagree," Jaune noted. "Ruby, you're the Avatar. There's gotta be something you can do. Just think."

Ruby folded her scythe's blade and put it behind her back, then looked down at the canal. Jaune watched her in silence, recognizing the signs on her face that told she was somewhere else, having a conversation with _someone_ else.

"I think… I _think_ …" she muttered. "There's something down there. Deep below the surface, on those underground caves Winter told me about. A lot of negative energy," she nodded. "I think if I go there, I can stop the Grimm, or at least cut their numbers or something."

"Sounds neat, except for the part where you'll be diving headfirst into a whole lot of water infested with a whole lot of Grimm," Jaune said. "But at least you can waterbend. And swim. Unlike a certain someone…"

"Eh, Neptune's fine. He has a cool trident," Ruby commented absently-minded. "A very cool trident… Anyways! I'm going! Wish me luck!"

"Wait, you can't dive in just like that!"

Ruby looked at him contemplatively, shrugged, then dived in, just like that.

"Yep," Jaune sat down. "Weiss is going kill to me."


	20. The Depths

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book One: Water**

**Chapter Twenty: The Depths**

* * *

The first thing Ruby noticed was how cold the water was. Not that it was unexpected – it was the North Pole, after all – but she hadn't really prepared herself for it before diving in. Perhaps that was for the better. She had bigger things to worry about.

There weren't any Grimm dangerously close to her for now, but she could feel some closing in from around her. If she didn't move fast, they would get to her, and she wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight underwater.

Ruby turned upside down, pressed her arms to her body, and began to move deeper down into the canal, bending the water above her to propel herself faster downwards. The further she got, the darker everything around her became, and soon, she could barely see in front of her.

Still holding her breath, Ruby spun around slowly, trying to find anything to guide her to where she needed to go. The dark energies were getting stronger by the minute, much easier to sense, but she couldn't count on just that to get to them. Who knew what she would come across, wandering aimlessly in the depths…

Two red lights appeared in front of her, and she almost smiled, before realizing that would most certainly spell her doom. Even the Avatar couldn't breathe underwater. She floated forwards carefully, reaching for the lights with her hands… then realized they were moving up, and that more of them were appearing.

Suddenly, she was looking at eight red orbs, and in the middle of each one of them, a smaller, dark circle, focused on her. Eyes. Huge, evil eyes. Panicking, Ruby torpedoed away, not daring to look back as she delved even further underwater. Maybe not the smartest move, but she wasn't about to wait around to be eaten by a giant… whatever that was!

She hit her forehead on something and went spinning away, losing all her momentum and being carried away by the underwater currents. Ruby shook her head, trying to reorient herself, but she was even more lost than before now. A new set of lights shone in front of her, green and blue and yellow, but she was wary of pursuing them after what had happened last time.

She sensed the water parting above her, as if the ocean beneath the North Pole was being divided in two by some force, and instinctively she knew that _that force_ was the same Grimm who was trying to eat her.

Well. At least the lights weren't red, so Grimm eyes were out of the question this time!

Ruby stopped for a moment, focusing all her being into her next movement, then exploded towards the lights, and the Grimm followed right behind her. Horrified, Ruby went even faster, to the point that it hurt, and finally, finally, she reached the lights.

Her skin felt cooler now, and it took her more than a few moments for her to notice she wasn't underwater anymore, but flying through musky air. She pulled out her staff and swung it in front of her in a wide arc, releasing a rush of wind to stop herself from hitting a wall and being turned to mush.

With a sigh of relief, she landed on her feet and looked around. Apparently, the lights she had seen were actually crystals embedded on the rocky walls of an underwater cavern. Maybe she had reached the place Winter had mentioned… where all those ancient, absolutely terrible Grimm came from.

Had anyone else ever come down here? Had they come back alive?

The cave continued forward and downwards, narrowing into a tunnel lit by more crystals. It was clear to her now: the dark energies she had been sensing came from down there. Right then, she wondered if her plan was actually any good, and if she wasn't about to walk herself to an early demise.

She tried to take a step forward, but her right foot refused to budge. Ruby looked down in annoyance, only to be terrified by the sight of a slimy tentacle wrapped around her ankle.

Before she could even think of doing anything, the tentacle pulled her back, and she fell, bracing herself with her hands, scraping them against the harsh rock of the cavern floor. She looked back and saw a whole other set of tentacles springing out of the water and towards her, all while she was brought to them.

" _No_!" she shrieked, and with the same sound, created a rush of wind beneath her that launched her upwards. In one continuous movement, she drew her scythe and slashed at the tentacle that gripped her, cutting it neatly.

As soon as her feet hit the ground, she went sprinting towards the tunnel. All around her fell the shadows of uncountable tentacles, but she refused to look back.

In her terror, she didn't even consider what could be waiting for her down below.

* * *

Winter spat on the ground, tainting the snow of the waterfront with red. She was on one knee, her head lowered, disoriented and quickly becoming desperate.

Her battle with the traitorous twin sisters had been going well in her favor, even with their controlling the fog to their advantage, but once the Grimm rose from below the water, she was forced to divert her attention to her allies. She did her best to keep them from losing their focus and dispersing, but the effort was mostly useless, and now the Fire Nation was advancing further into the city.

On the other hand, the twins had seemed almost delighted by the Grimm's interference. They hadn't stopped their attack, and Winter was now on the losing side of the battle.

Melanie and Miltia could very well have a telepathic bond, with how well they worked together. Their techniques complimented each other perfectly, giving her no room to fight back once she was put on the defensive. If Winter were anything but a Grandmaster, she would have been defeated immediately.

Only now was she catching a break, although she couldn't quite figure out why the sisters had backed off. Perhaps they had been forced to turn their attention to a Grimm, or a particularly daring waterbender. Or they were just playing with her. Whatever the reason, Winter was glad to be able to rest for a while and form a plan.

It was obvious to her now why she was losing. Yes, the sisters were a formidable foe, but she should be able to beat them. Except she wasn't giving her all. Her thoughts had been like a storm for the past hours, and her bending suffered for it.

No more. She was going to show those traitors why she was chosen to teach the Avatar herself!

* * *

It took what felt like hours for Ruby to finally feel safe enough to slow down and catch her breath. Somewhere in the tunnel behind her, the Grimm with the tentacles had ceased chasing her. Whether that was because he had run out of range or out of patience, Ruby didn't know, but she wasn't about to complain about it.

The dark energy was practically visible to her now, pouring like waves onto her skin. The light of the crystals seemed dimmer, and the air felt heavy. Shadows kept slinking past her, red eyes opening and closing everywhere she looked, as if the cavern itself was a Grimm.

She sat down and buried her face in her hands, feeling her whole body shake. She had thought she would never feel more afraid than when she'd lost her mother, but this… Being alone at what could very well be the bottom of the ocean, surrounded by darkness and Grimm, open to attack at any second… This was it. This was true fear.

She parted her fingers and, through the space between them, stared at the red eyes in front of her. She knew they were closing in, slowly but surely, and she wasn't ready to fight, not in the state she was in.

Just as she begun to close her eyes, she felt something happen inside her, a warmth spreading through her, like a torch lit in a cold, dark room. Then, from the back of her head, came a familiar voice.

" _You are extraordinarily brave, Ruby. Even for an Avatar. I wouldn't have advised coming down here, but I suppose it's too late for that now._ "

"O-Ozpin?" she muttered.

" _Yes, Ruby. You're growing as an Avatar. Even in such a dark place, I was able to take a hold of your light and establish a connection between us. It's not the strongest link, but it will hold for a minute._ "

"Alright," Ruby gulped, still watching the approaching Grimm. "Let's use that minute to save me. Any advice?"

" _Of course. As you know, Grimm are attracted to negative emotions. Face them with positive ones, or with a clear mind, and they will pose you no harm_ ," Ozpin said. " _Keep to your happiest memories. And remember, you're never alone. I'm always with you_." She couldn't see him, but Ruby could vividly imagine a smile on his lips just then."We _are always with you_."

Ruby nodded and stood up. The warm feeling inside her faded, but she could still sense a slight presence at the back of her head. Comforted, she began walking forward, straight at the approaching red eyes.

Happiest memories, she thought.

Being broken out of the ice by Jaune, and knowing instantly that he was a friend for life.

Noticing for the first time that Weiss wasn't as cold as she pretended to be, and that she looked genuinely happy when teaching her waterbending.

The first time she airbended, and the little party her mother had thrown to celebrate the occasion.

The Grimm didn't move a muscle as she stepped past them, as if she wasn't even there. Ruby smiled. Why had she ever been scared in the first place?

To her surprise, the floor of the cave started to slant upward, so steep that she had to put some effort into not slipping back down. After some thought, she realized it made some sense. Whatever she was going towards was probably at the center of the network of tunnels, and she just might have come in through one of the lowest points of entry.

After a few minutes of walking, she arrived at a bigger, circular cavern, lit by hundreds of crystals. There were more tunnels at every direction she looked, going down, up, straight… It was too much for her to make sense of. If it wasn't for her Avatar senses, she would have never reached this place.

In the center of the cavern was a much bigger crystal, its height easily reaching half the cavern's. Tendrils of darkness emanated from it, snapping like whips, some of them breaking off and turning into various Grimm. Ruby felt her stomach turn at the sight. This definitely wasn't something humans were meant to witness.

"Oh, well," she muttered. "There goes me. Brave Avatar Ruby."

Carefully, she walked to the crystal, struggling through the waves of darkness. The force that pushed against her was not only strong, but it also felt alive, primal, malicious, the antithesis to her whole being.

She came close to the crystal, her fingertips just centimeters from touching its glowing surface. Unconsciously, she formed a question, and immediately came a multitude of voices inside her head, saying

_no, yes, run, do it, break it, hide, give in_

" _What you're about to do is something only a few Avatars have ever tried, and not all of those survived the ordeal_ ," Ozpin's voice rang through. " _I'm afraid I cannot give you any guidance on this, Ruby. None of us can. But whatever comes, we will be with you._ "

At once, all the voices quieted down, and Ruby felt an overwhelming sense of peace.

She reached forward and touched the crystal.

* * *

With the Fire Nation, the Water Tribe and the Grimm engaged in a three-way battle, the streets of the North Pole had become what could only be described as a warzone. People were being tossed into the canals; fire was spreading through the buildings and melting them; and the air was filled with smoke made from both bending and the death of Grimm.

Torchwick was not that happy about the turn of events as he thought he would be. Sure, he had planned on setting that Nevermore loose on the city, and it had worked well for him. But he had never accounted for having more than one Grimm involved, and with so many attacking now, the advancement of his troops had become a real struggle.

Worst of all, he had no idea where the Avatar was. The last time he had seen her was when she'd gone after the Nevermore, but that bird was nowhere to be seen, as was she. Maybe she was busy fighting off the other Grimm, or she was hiding from him somewhere – as she should!

But he had a plan, a brilliant plan, as he always did. He knew how the Avatar worked, how responsible she felt for the whole world. So he was going to march into the palace and hold the chieftain and everyone inside hostage, until the twerp showed up. She would have no choice but to surrender.

He was crossing a bridge over the canals with a small contingent of his soldiers, when a fiery explosion struck them from behind, knocking half of them over the edge and into the water. Torchwick turned around, furious, and saw Yang Xiao Long and her father walking towards him, their fists aflame and ready to attack again.

"You!" Torchwick exclaimed. "The twins captured you and handed you over to Junior! How the hell did you escape and make it all the way here?!"

"Junior and I had a falling out," Yang smirked. "And I'm a pretty good swimmer."

"Stand down, Roman. Order your men to stop attacking," Taiyang said seriously. "Contrary to the Fire Nation, the Water Tribe gives fair judgment to their surrendered foes… even the ones that don't really deserve it."

"Of course you would say something like that, Taiyang," Torchwick rolled his eyes. "You know, if you love the Water Tribe so much, you should consider moving here! It's not like you have any loyalty to your own country left, after all."

"That's precious, coming from you," Taiyang shook his head. "We gave you a chance. Remember that."

Torchwick glared at him, and with a simple gesture of his hand, ordered his remaining soldiers to attack. They rushed at the traitors at once, but Taiyang stepped in front of his daughter and stomped on the ground, unleashing a wall of fire towards them. It was too wide for them to dodge, and in a moment of desperation, all the soldiers jumped off the bridge to save themselves.

Torchwick grunted and waved his hands, parting the wall around him, then marched towards the pair. Yang cast a glance at her father, and he nodded and stepped back, leaving the fight to her.

"So, the prodigal daughter returns," Torchwick said. "You should have accepted your failure, princess. I'm afraid I won't be as merciful this time."

"Last time, when you had your lackeys do the dirty work? Please. You couldn't defeat me if your life depended on it," Yang smiled smugly. "And look where we are now…"

Suddenly, she picked up speed, dashing at him with a raised fist. Torchwick stopped and brought his arms in front of him to block, but to his surprise, she changed directions, jumping to the side and kicking against the bridge's rail. He never even had the chance to react to the following kick, which hit him squarely in the face and sent him sprawling back, off-balance.

Yang was already peppering him with fire before she even landed, and all he could do was block the most dangerous of the projectiles, while the less damaging ones struck him anyway, in his shoulders, knees, feet… He was locked down with no hope of breaking free of the assault.

"You see, Torchwick?" Yang said. "You're hopeless in a real battle. This is why you shouldn't let other people fight for you!"

"You brat!" Torchwick exclaimed in frustration. "You haven't seen… anything!"

"I think I've seen enough, actually," Yang said. She stopped firing to just stare at him, then shrugged. "But I _guess_ I can let you have a free shot. Just to prove a point, you know?"

Torchwick grunted, and for a moment, she could swear she saw vapor coming out his ears. He marched towards her, then threw a punch at her head, but she just dodged by leaning sideways a little. Yang shoved him back with one hand, then gestured for him to come at her again.

He was seeing red now, she could tell, and was glad for it. Back when she was a child and less experienced in combat, Yang used to fuel her firebending with her anger. It worked, up until the point a real opponent came along and used that anger against her. Then, she'd had to evolve. Torchwick, she figured, had never learned that lesson.

Torchwick's outburst came without warning, a continuous barrage of fire that came out of his hands and stood to his full height. Yang stood her ground, extending her arms in front to divert the fire around her body. She heard Torchwick yell something, then the attack intensified, and for a brief moment, she thought she would be overwhelmed by the fire...

After what felt like centuries, Torchwick ceased his attack. His arms hung uselessly by his sides, vapor emanating from his hands, while he panted raggedly. He looked up, a cocky smile forming on his lips, and was shocked to see Yang still standing, as if nothing had happened.

"What?!" he yelled, outraged. "How?! That was my most powerful attack! You should have been reduced to ash!"

"I barely did anything. Face it, _Roman_ , you defeated yourself," Yang said. "You see, you thought you were so superior to me, but you never even dared lay a finger on me. You invaded my ship; you spouted threats about telling the Fire Lord _this_ or _that_ ; you had me _kidnapped_ because you didn't have the courage to take me on yourself," she smiled. "The only reason it took so long for me to take you down… is because you're a coward."

"You… you…" Torchwick was shaking with fury now, fire crackling between his fingers. "You are _nothing_!"

He threw a fireball at her, so suddenly Yang almost didn't block on time. She braced herself as he slowly walked towards her, her eyes scanning him from head to toe. He was still angry, but it was a different kind of anger now… something cold, and much more dangerous.

"You think I need lectures from you? You think I care what you think?" he spat. "I am Roman Torchwick! A cheater, a liar, a mercenary and a killer! I am the scourge of the world, but you think you're any better than me?!"

Yang could do nothing but stare at him, mouth agape. She was so shocked, she didn't even feel the bridge rumbling beneath her feet.

"You think so?" Torchwick raised a flaming hand above his head. "Do you _think so_ , you spoiled, stupid, treacherous little-"

A Grimm snake emerged from the canal, throwing a massive amount of water up with it. Its eyes focused on Torchwick, and then it head snapped towards him. The general began to turn, but he could never had been fast enough, and in the next instant, the Grimm was retreating back to the depths.

Torchwick was gone.

Yang stood there for a moment, not quite knowing what to do, then looked back over her shoulder. Taiyang also appeared shocked as he walked to her.

"Damn," he muttered. "That was…"

"Yeah…" Yang frowned. "What a horrible way to go. I mean, he was horrible. He represented everything bad about the Fire Nation. But still… Being eaten by Grimm…"

Taiyang patted her on the shoulder. "It's good you care, sweetheart. That's what set you two apart." He took a step back and looked around warily. "Speaking of Grimm… Take a look."

The city was still filled with the noises of war, with fighters of the Fire Nation and Water Tribe gathering in small groups and clashing against each other in the streets. But the number of Grimm seemed to be much lower than before, with most of them diving back into the water.

"That's weird," Yang said. "Do you think they are retreating?"

"Grimm don't run away, especially when they are this many. They just keep attacking, dying, and attacking again until there's no more prey to be had," Taiyang shook his head. "I have no clue what they are doing now."

"Does it matter? The less Grimm we have to deal with, the better," Yang said. "So what's our next move? We could join the fight against the Fire jerks, but I don't think we'd be welcomed. We need to find the-"

"Stop right there!"

Two squadrons of Water Tribe soldiers surrounded them, each one coming from either end of the bridge. They wielded lances, swords and shields, and a couple already had waterbending attacks at the ready.

Taiyang raised his arms immediately, while Yang just groaned in annoyance. "We're already stopped!" she pointed out, prompting Taiyang to elbow her on the side. Yang glared at him, but raised her arms anyway.

"Firebenders!" one of the Water Tribe captains shouted. "Show any hint of rebellion, and we will be forced to take extreme measures! Comply with our orders, and you'll receive fair trial by the chieftain!"

"Okay. We're not attacking," Yang said slowly. "But you guys need to understand we're on your side. We can help."

"Liar!" the captain yelled immediately.

"I mean, we did see her fighting that crazy dude before," another soldier spoke up meekly. "She was pretty badass."

"Well, she was, but – that's irrelevant!" The captain shook his head. "We'll take both of them in for questioning."

"Sounds great!" Taiyang exclaimed. "Just so you know, she's the princess of the Fire Nation, so you probably don't wanna hurt her."

The captain stared at Yang, awestruck, while the rest of the soldiers started whispering to each other. A few seconds later, the captain recovered from his shock and looked at Taiyang.

"Alright," he said. "And who are you?"

"Me?" Taiyang shrugged. "I'm just her dad."

* * *

No light.

No sound.

No air on her lungs.

Just nothing. She was floating on nothing.

And then she was standing, again on nothing, as darkness rushed at her like the currents of the ocean, pushing against her so hard it felt like she was being torn apart from the inside.

Terror struck at her mind, awakening thoughts she didn't know she had and destroying the beliefs she held dearest in her heart.

 _Your happiest memories_.

There was something in that darkness, she could see it but didn't know what it was, except that is was evil.

_Being broken out of the ice by Jaune, and knowing instantly that he was a friend for life._

There was something beyond that veil. Something ancient. Something she wasn't meant to see.

_Noticing for the first time that Weiss wasn't as cold as she pretended to be, and that she looked genuinely happy when teaching her waterbending._

The darkness was alive and taking form, all around her, all around her, all around her

_The first time she airbended, and the little party her mother-_

They was watching her.

The red eyes.

They were watching her, the red eyes were watching her, the red eyes, the red eyes, watching her, the red eyes watching her

**AVATAR**

* * *

Though the chieftain would never condone the use of that word, the current state of the palace could only be described as a mess.

A lot of people had come to take shelter in it once they became aware of the ongoing Fire Nation invasion, and even more began to arrive when the Grimm emerged from the depths. It was a flood of desperate and outraged people, and there was not enough space to house them all.

To add to the trouble, the palace was the only place the chieftain and his advisors could use to coordinate the war efforts, as every other spot in the city was either unreachable, under attack, or captured. Soldiers were coming and going every minute, bringing back information and fallen comrades.

Their doctors, both of the mundane and waterbending variety, were working non-stop to treat not only soldiers, but also civilians who had been harmed during their escape.

Jaune was on guard duty just outside the palace, taking care of any Grimm and Fire Nation people who somehow made it all the way there. He was joined by some other older men, and Neptune, who had jumped back into the fight after recovering from his incident with the canals.

The situation was still dire, but for some reason, Jaune had a feeling things were about to get better. It had been a long time since any Grimm had reached them, and the bigger ones had stopped showing altogether in the distance. It was as if they had left the battle entirely. Only the Fire Nation remained.

As he was reflecting on those thoughts, a troop of Water Tribe soldiers approached the palace. Unlike most of the other returning soldiers, who were more than relieved to be at a safe place again, these wore serious expressions and hadn't lowered their weapons at all.

Jaune leaned forward to peer at the soldiers, narrowing his eyes, and saw two people walking in the middle of them, wearing vibrant red and yellow. There was something familiar about them, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what…

"Hey, Neptune," Jaune said. "I'm going inside for a moment. Hang on, alright?"

"Sure. I can handle myself," Neptune cleared his throat. "Unless, you know, there's water involved."

"Yeah, uhm… let's have a chat about that later, buddy." Jaune patted him in the back, then turned and followed the troop that was now entering the palace.

As soon as they were inside, the troop's captain ordered his subordinates to split off and rest, while he continued on with the prisoners. With no one in the way anymore, Jaune could now see those two were the Fire Nation princess Yang, and her father.

"Hey!" he shouted, running after them. "What are you doing here?"

Yang looked over her shoulder and, for a brief moment, was utterly confused. "Oh. It's you, uh… Jaune! Nice to see you here! Any clue where- Hey!" She turned her head to glare at the captain, who had casually poked her arm with the blunt end of his lance. "You mind not doing that? Ever again? 'Cause it's really annoying."

The captain shrugged. "It was an accident."

While Yang was busy gritting her teeth at the tribesman, Jaune turned to her father, who seemed much more relaxed. "Hey," he said. "So, did you guys get captured or something?"

"In a way. We… took care of Roman Torchwick, but your friends wanted to have a chat with us, so we obliged," Yang's father said. "I'm Taiyang, by the way. Who are you?"

"I'm Jaune. I'm…" Jaune searched for a way to introduce himself that would make a good impression this time, but unfortunately, he could come up with nothing good. Standard introduction it was, then. "I'm friends with Ruby. The Avatar, I mean."

"Ah. Well, that's interesting," Taiyang smiled. "Where is she, by the way? I feel an apology is in order, for chasing you guys all around the world."

"Ruby is… How do I say it…"

Before Jaune could continue, they arrived before the chieftain, who was gathered around a strategy table with his advisors. When he looked up and saw not only one, but two firebenders in his presence, he dismissed his people with a gesture, then approached them.

"Sir. We captured these two alone in the battle," the captain explained. "They were fighting the enemy general, and the… big fellow claims the girl is the Fire Nation princess."

"Excuse me? You didn't capture us, we came willingly," Yang interjected. "And yes, I am the princess of the Fire Nation. Or at least I was. Just call me Yang."

"Big fellow?" Taiyang repeated under his breath. "Come on, man, I _am_ trying to lose weight."

"You are?" Yang snorted. "I haven't noticed."

The chieftain gave the captain a brief compliment for his service, then permitted him to join his troop to rest. Once they were alone, he turned to Yang and Taiyang with a guarded expression.

"I am the chieftain of the Water Tribe of the North, Jacques Schnee. I would say it's an honor to meet you two, but alas, I fear those words would be empty, especially today," he said. "I have heard much about you, Taiyang Xiao Long. Stories about your falling-out with the Fire Lord. Of course, I give no mind to such mindless rumors and drivel."

"You should. They might not be all true, but they should give you an idea of our characters," Taiyang said. "We might be Fire Nation, chieftain, but we are not puppets to my wife's empire. Far from it."

"I…" Yang paused to glance at her father. "We chose to fight for what we believe in. We'll fight to protect the world, and to make it a better home for everybody." She nodded. "To that goal, we'll fight, no matter what!"

Jacques stared at them for a long time, completely silent. Yang fidgeted under his gaze, and even Taiyang was a bit bothered. Jaune had spent enough time around the chieftain to know he was considering more than if they were threats.

"As you say. You certainly sound spirited. My people shall not lay a hand on you for the duration of your stay here," Jacques said. "But make no mistake. One move out of line, and you'll wish you had never set foot in my palace."

"Sounds fair to me." Yang gave him a little smile. Jacques showed no reaction.

"Alright. So, first order of business," Taiyang crossed his arms. "We need to find the Avatar. We took care of Torchwick. Now we need to figure out a way to get rid of the Grimm, and who better to do that the master of the four elements?"

"Only two, currently. Or one and a half, she's not really a master of waterbending yet," Jaune spoke up. "Oh, and she's somewhere very deep underwater right now. Ruby thinks there is something down there that can stop the Grimm."

Yang nodded slowly, impressed by the thought of Ruby diving so far in Grimm-infested water, and all by herself to boot. She was about to voice that sentiment, when her father landed a heavy hand on her shoulder, startling her.

"Dad?" she asked hesitantly, seeing his face go pale.

"That's why the Grimm were going back down. Whatever Ruby's doing down there, it's big and dangerous enough to draw all of them to her." Taiyang shook his head in horror. "We need to get to her as fast as possible, or she's done for."

"O-of course, but we can't swim all that way!" Yang said. "I mean, unless you've got some weird firebending technique that works underwater?"

"That, unfortunately, is not a thing," Taiyang declared, dead serious.

Jacques alternated between looking at the two of them, as if deep in thought, then exhaled loudly. "The Avatar is most certainly in the network of tunnels and caverns that run deep down the city. We have an entrance to it from the surface, close to the palace, but it is kept locked at all times, for obvious reasons," he paused. "I will order one of my people to open it for you. Do what you must."

"Thank you, chieftain!" Yang bowed hastily.

"I'm coming along!" Jaune said, gripping his sword on his belt.

"Yes, we'll need all the help we can get." Taiyang cracked his fists. "We have an Avatar to save."

* * *

_fear anger blood alone guilt dreams red shame escape pain roses darkness_

* * *

"Come _on_ , Miss Grandmaster!" Miltia's shrill voice echoed through the waterfront. "Stop hiding!"

"Yeah, we just wanna play a little!" Melanie shouted after her. "Why you gotta ruin our fun?"

"Yeah, let's all just have a little-" Suddenly, there was a tendril of water wrapped around Miltia's raised wrist, and she was pulled back with a jerk.

Winter stepped out from behind a piece of the fallen wall and kneed Miltia just as she reached her, knocking the air out of the girl.

"My sincerest apologies," Winter said coldly. "I don't do fun." She brought a hand down, sending her water whip cracking towards Miltia's head, but the attack was diverted by an identical one belonging to Melanie.

Winter jumped back and crossed her arms in front of her, but that wasn't enough to properly defend herself from the massive torrent the sisters sent at her together, which sent her reeling back, barely keeping herself from falling.

Just as she regained her balance and prepared a counterattack, a bright glint approached her from her left. Recognizing what it was instinctively, Winter leaned her head back, and the spear passed flying right in front of her face, a hair's width from her nose.

The Fire Nation soldier came rushing at her with his bare fists, yelling bravely. Winter just whipped him in the head, knocking him down, then froze him to the ground. Her victory was only momentary, however, for when she looked up again, a dozen more soldiers were dashing towards her.

"Hey! We didn't ask for help, you guys!" Miltia tilted her head sideways. "But… we're not complaining! Right, sister?'

"Whatever," Melanie clucked her tongue. "You can take her out. I'm beginning to get bored of the hag."

Winter took a deep breath. She was dizzy and exhausted after all that time spent fighting the twins and the Fire Nation all by herself, but she needed to keep focused… Even if her head was spinning… Even if it felt like her skull was being cracked open from the inside…

A spear came flying at her, and Winter did her best to deflect it, though it was a clumsy move. Grunting, she gestured with her hands, and the snow below the soldiers' feet turned to ice. Some of them reacted fast and kept going, but a few slower ones slipped and fell.

"Eh. Amateurish at best," Melanie said. "Right, Miltia?"

"You said it, sister," Miltia scoffed. "Grandmaster? More like Grand _failure_."

"Okay, Miltia, that _burn_ was really amateurish. Frankly, I'm disappointed in you."

"Shut…" Winter turned to face them. " _UP!_ "

She raised her arms, and the ground below the twins shattered, and the ocean came erupting upwards like a geyser, sending them flying helplessly, holding onto each other for dear life.

Winter twisted her hand, and the geyser engulfed them completely, making a form akin to a fist, then came crashing back down with them. Miltia and Melanie slammed on the snow and ice, and didn't get back up.

Winter turned to face the soldiers. They had stopped running and were grouped close together. Good. They were afraid, she thought, her mind working lethargically. A smile started to appear on her lips…

The soldiers split to the sides, opening a path and revealing one of their own, a firebender gathering fire between his hands to form a big fireball. Before Winter could fully process what she was seeing, the projectile was flying at her, and she was too slow to dodge, too slow to block, too slow to do anything…

No worries. Someone would pick up her work where she had left off. There was a… certain candidate…

Her ears registered the noise of the fireball evaporating in front of her, but it wasn't until she blinked several times and shook her head that she noticed Weiss standing before her, water flowing around her arms as if it was alive.

"Sorry I'm late." Weiss looked back at her. "The city's a complete mess. Hopefully I've cleaned it up a bit."

"Don't worry," Winter smiled tiredly. "You're just on time."

"Right," Weiss turned her gaze back to the soldiers. "You'll regret messing with my sister."

The firebender sent another fireball at her, but Weiss disposed of it just as easily as the first one. Thinking of taking advantage of that, the armed soldiers started towards her, brandishing their weapons.

"As if." Weiss raised her arms, and the water flowing around her arms lashed out and struck the leading soldiers, pushing them back towards their companions, until they came around in a circle and collided against each other. The twin strings of water merged together to form a bigger body, and with a quick flick of Weiss' hands, it turned to ice, trapping all the soldiers inside it.

The firebender shouted angrily and unleashed a cone of fire at her, but Weiss ducked below it expertly, then spun forward elegantly. "You're no better." She lashed out with a fist, and water came spurting out of the ground just in front of him and hit him right in the face, knocking him out cold.

Weiss beat her hands together, then turned back to Winter, but something caught her attention at the corner of her eyes. Miltia and Melanie were getting back up, and seemed to be scheming their vengeance already.

"And you two…" Weiss pointed at them, and the ground below them shattered once again, but this time, they plopped right into the cold ocean. The water began to spin, faster by the second, making a whirlpool of sorts.

Weiss grinned and gestured upwards, and the water made a quick jump. The twins were sent flying in separate directions, until they eventually fell back down, now truly knocked out. "Stay quiet."

Winter watched in silence as Weiss looked around, making sure there were no enemies remaining, then turned back to her. "So… what do you think?"

Winter saw the hopeful glint in her eyes, that shine she remembered from a simpler time, when Weiss was just a little girl who wanted nothing more than her family's approval.

To her surprise, and despite how exhausted and in pain she was, Winter found herself holding back from laughing. "What do I think?" She smiled. "I think I'm not the youngest Grandmaster in recorded history anymore."

* * *

 _the world will die burning and all you little people will be witnesses as we rise and the world will die burning and your nations will matter no more and the world will die burning and we will bathe in its ashes and the world will die burning and you will be left all alone again and you will die burning and there is nothing you can do to stop it_ _**AVATAR** _

* * *

"On your left!"

Jaune responded to Taiyang's warning and swung his sword just in time to slash a bat Grimm in two as it lunged at him. The smoke clouded his vision for a moment, but he resumed running soon, following Yang's guiding firelight ahead of him.

The tunnel seemed to go on forever, and there were so many diverging paths, it was like a nightmare. Luckily, they knew they had to keep going down, and they had started to feel… _something_ in the air. Something evil and twisted. It was faint, but definitely there.

Jaune wondered, if they were now feeling that dark energy, and it was so heavy… how Ruby must have felt, getting so close, with her greater aptitude to sensing it. It was almost painful to imagine.

He was snapped from his thoughts when a gigantic centipede Grimm came running out of a parallel tunnel and into theirs, blocking the way. The trio was stopped for a while, not knowing what to do, before Yang finally raised her voice.

"Guys! Follow me, quick!" She sprinted and jumped, hanging onto the end of the centipede, as if she were riding it.

Jaune stared, mouth agape, before Taiyang grabbed him by the back of his collar and tossed him at the Grimm too. "I'll be right behind you two! There's more Grimm coming our way, I'll hold them off!"

Yang started to protest, but they were already well away, and he had disappeared in the darkness. "That stupid old man! I can't believe him, thinking he'll be some kind of hero!"

" _Dude_!" Jaune shouted. "We're riding a giant centipede! _A giant centipede_! This is the kind of plan only Ruby would come up with!"

"You know what they say - great minds think alike!"

They held on for dear life as the Grimm ran deeper down into the tunnel, sometimes having to press their bodies against the monster to avoid hitting their heads against the stone ceiling and the glowing crystals that protruded from it.

Not too long after, the tunnel began to widen, and they felt the centipede slowing down slightly. There was something in front of them, a light much brighter than the glow of the crystals and Yang's wavering fire, and the Grimm was headed straight towards it.

They finally exited the tunnel and arrived at a huge cavern, but the unlikely pair had no time to celebrate, as they were now flying through the air along with their ride. The tunnel had been way above ground level, and the Grimm had been going too fast to stop.

The Grimm started to turn so it was above them, making Jaune yell as he realized they would be crushed between the giant monster and the ground.

"Hold on!" Yang grabbed him by his shirt and jumped off, then pointed at the ground with her free hand and released a stream of fire. Their descent slowed down severely, but Yang was having a hard time holding Jaune and keeping the fire going at the same time.

Once they were closer to the ground, Yang stopped bending, letting both of them fall. It still hurt, but not enough that she cared. Taking a quick glance at Jaune, she assumed that was also the case with him.

Jaune scrambled to his feet and looked at the light coming from the very center of the cavern. It was almost blinding, but he forced himself to look until he was accustomed to it. Only then did he notice the black crystal rising from the floor, the furious wind making circles around it, and…

"Ruby?" Jaune muttered, then took a step forward. "Ruby!"

He yelled as loud as he could, but Ruby didn't turn around. She was kneeling on the ground, her head lowered, with one hand touching the crystal. Jaune shook his head. Something was definitely wrong here, and he needed to put an end to it, for Ruby's sake!

"Jaune! Above you!" Yang yelled, blasting a Beowolf that had fallen from the ceiling, aiming for his head.

Jaune looked around and saw more Grimm arriving by the second, lots of little ones, and others as big as the centipede they had ridden. He held his sword in front of him and prepared to fight, but to his surprise, the vast majority of them ran past him and Yang and tried to get at Ruby, but were blown back by the fierce wind.

"You know, normally I'm happy when Grimm ignore me, but not this time," Jaune said. "Ruby's fine for now, but what if one of them gets through?"

"You're right. She needs to stop whatever she's doing," Yang closed her fists and walked further away from Ruby and the crystal. "Get to her. I'll cover you."

"You sure? That's a lot of Grimm…" Jaune said.

"Just go!" Yang yelled, then started blasting away at the Grimm.

Not one to argue with angry princesses, Jaune immediately turned and ran towards Ruby. The wind lashed at him, striking his whole body at once, and he was sent reeling back violently.

Grunting, Jaune tried again, pushing as hard as he could against the wind. He brought his sword down, driving its tip into the ground and gripping it with all his might. That was just enough to keep him in place, but he doubted that would last long.

"Ruby!" he shouted over the deafening wind. "It's me! Jaune! Listen to my voice!"

She didn't move a muscle. Dark tendrils crackled around the crystal, then raced along her arm to the rest of her body.

Jaune reached forward, but his sword gave away and went flying out of his reach. He started to fall, but braced himself against the stony ground and held onto it, hurting himself from how much force he was using.

He looked up and gasped. Ruby's hand was sliding down the crystal, as if she were losing strength. Her head limped to the side, and for the first time, Jaune saw how empty her normally vibrant eyes were.

Summoning one last burst of strength he didn't know he had, Jaune stood up and lunged forward, fighting against the wind even as it threatened to crush him against the ground. Gritting his teeth, he extended a hand towards Ruby, coming so close, so close…

" _RUBY_!"

He touched her.

* * *

The darkness was crushing him, driving the air out of his lungs. He could hear a voice, but he couldn't make out what it said. But he was certain it was evil, so evil his mind couldn't comprehend it.

There was a single spot of light in the middle of the darkness. Something solid and white, and it gave feeling, unlike the nothing he was surrounded by.

It was cold. He could feel the cold.

He walked towards it and stared. Despite the terror clawing at his mind, he couldn't help but find it funny.

What was an iceberg doing here?

He drew his sword from its scabbard. It was almost impossible to hold, so heavy it was. He might as well be lifting a planet.

But he raised it above his head anyway, because… Because he had to…

Because she needed him, and he needed her.

He spun the sword around and brought its pommel down on the iceberg.

Nothing.

He brought it down again.

The ice shattered, and darkness became light.

* * *

The temperature in the cavern was becoming difficult to endure. Between running and dodging around the Grimm and firebending with barely any pause, Yang was reaching her peak, and her appearance was proof of it, with her hair plastered to her forehead and her uniform sticking to her skin.

A Boarbatusk came rolling at her, but Yang jumped aside just in time to avoid being hit. She blasted the Grimm with a fireball, then turned quickly to kick a Beowolf away. A stinger came down in her direction, and all she could do was try to scare it away with some fire. Luckily, it worked.

If there was one positive about her current situation, it was that she was accomplishing what she had set out to do – a little too well, perhaps. Only a few Grimm were still trying to get to Ruby, while the rest were now focused strictly on her. They probably thought she was an easier target. It hurt her pride a little, but Yang felt inclined to agree.

The Death Stalker which had tried to pierce her with its stinger came forward, snapping its pincers at her. Yang jumped away and threw a fireball at it, but the creature's tough armor made it harmless. It advanced on her again, closing in too fast, and tried to close a stinger around her body.

Yang ducked and rolled forward, now right in front of the Grimm's mouth. She coughed as its horrible breath filled her nostrils, then raised an arm and punched, releasing a burst of fire into its mouth. The Death Stalker screeched in agony, then turned to smoke.

"Well, who's next?!" she shouted when the smoke cleared and she saw the rest of Grimm gathered around her. "Come on! I don't have all day!"

She kept a fireball at the ready, waiting carefully for the first strike. But the Grimm did not move. They seemed frozen in fear all of a sudden, and she highly doubted it was just because of her.

Then she noticed how quiet the cavern was. The wind had stopped.

Yang looked back and saw Jaune kneeling on the floor amongst a thousand pieces of shattered crystal, while slowly, Ruby floated upwards, her cloak flowing around her. Her eyes were shining so brightly, it lit the entirety of the cavern.

Ruby thrust a hand forward, and the air around her spun like a tornado and sped towards the Grimm. Yang ducked and covered her ears, protecting herself from the attack just in time, but the Grimm weren't so smart. The smaller ones were sent flying or outright destroyed by the attack, while the largest screamed in protest and turned to run.

"Huh." Yang smiled. "What was that about Grimm never running away?"

* * *

"Stupid… Dumb… Beast! _Let me out_!"

Roman roared, releasing fire from his mouth. The flames bounced back from the Grimm's inner hide, singing his face, but he didn't stop. In time, the creature gave way, and he was hit by an incoming wave of fresh air as a hole was torn on its belly.

He didn't waste a second jumping out of the Grimm. Roman lit a small flame on his hand and looked down at himself. He was bleeding pretty much everywhere, and he knew there were more than a few things broken inside him, but, for now, he was still breathing.

Struggling to stay standing, he looked at his surroundings. A cavern, its air moist. Probably underwater. Grimm were running past him at full speed, by a miracle not trampling him. There was something shining near the ceiling of the cavern…

 _Her_.

"Ah… ahaha…" Roman laughed weakly, not quite believing his own luck. Even after being almost digested by a Grimm, he was presented with this gift! Sure, it wasn't like he would ever make it out of wherever he was alive, and there would be no reward for killing the Avatar, but damn if it wouldn't feel good after all the hell she had put him through…

"Say goodbye, Red…" he muttered, raising a hand and slowly aiming in her direction. "Let's not meet again, wherever we end up…"

Fire crackled to life on his palm, growing bigger and bigger. It couldn't be something small. No, no. To end an Avatar was not a simple task. He had to give it his all…

Just as his attack was coming to fruition, a hand fell on his shoulder, and he was pulled back violently. He turned his head to see who had attacked him, and was immediately greeted by a pair of lilac eyes sparking with fury.

"Leave my daughter alone."

* * *

At the end of that day of hatred and despair, as the sun began to set over the horizon and the sky glowed orange, a shining figure rose from the depths and flew over the burning city of the North Pole.

The figure spoke in a hundred voices, and these hundred voices echoed throughout the streets as a warning, as a promise, as a wish.

At the end of that day of hatred and despair, two peoples looked up and, with all their differences, saw the same sight and felt the same feelings.

The figure summoned water and wind to end the fires that still burned and banish the Grimm that refused to run.

At the end of that day of hatred and despair, the fight ended, if only for a little while.

At the end of that day… the world knew hope again.

* * *

Even as midnight arrived, the city was bustling with activity. There was a lot to rebuild, such as the walls and the houses that had been destroyed during the battle. And there was the matter of the Fire Nation soldiers that had failed to retreat in time. That would be a problem for the chieftain and his advisors for weeks.

Despite all that, Ruby and Jaune found the time to go to the waterfront and see Yang and her father off. The chieftain had been kind enough to lend them a ship, as a thank you for their help during the invasion, and the two were eager to leave – or at least one of them was.

"Are you sure you don't wanna stay?" Ruby asked as the crew lowered the boarding ramp. "I thought we were going to get to know each other."

"Yeah, I thought that too," Taiyang said, glaring playfully at Yang. "But _someone_ is too eager for her own good."

"Hey. It's not that I don't want to hang out with you, it's just…" Yang sighed. "We're actual full-blown rebels now. We're taking the fight to the Fire Nation, and… I kinda can't wait to get to it!"

"Sadly, she's the one who calls the shots," Taiyang said, then winked at Ruby. "Or that's what I let her think, at least."

Ruby giggled, while Yang just rolled her eyes and began to climb aboard the ship. Halfway there, she stopped and turned quickly, raising a finger. "Oh! Almost forgot!" she exclaimed. "Bye, Jaune!"

"H-huh?!" Jaune stuttered in surprise. He had been happy just listening and watching, never having expected to be addressed at all. "B-bye! I, uh, hope we'll see each other some day?"

"I'm sure we will," Taiyang smiled to him, then looked at Ruby for a moment. "Have fun saving the world… Avatar."

Ruby saluted him, and finally, he climbed aboard too. A few minutes later, the ship was sailing away, back to the Earth Kingdom.

"Ruby, do you, uh…" Jaune said awkwardly. "Do you think Yang… _likes_ me?"

"Sure!" Ruby exclaimed immediately. "Everybody likes you, Jaune!"

"That's not what I…" Jaune sighed. "Never mind. That was probably the correct answer anyway."

They watched the departing ship for a while more, then turned to head back to the city. Before they truly could get going, however, Weiss appeared, walking towards them quickly.

"Oh, hi, Weiss!" Jaune exclaimed. "Long time no see."

"Indeed." Weiss grinned. "Sorry I couldn't get here sooner. Winter asked for my help with some stuff, and before I knew it, I was caught up in the rebuilding efforts…"

"Really?" Ruby asked. "I thought you were with Neptune?"

"What? Oh, right," Weiss frowned. "How could I forget? I'll have to see him first thing in the morning."

"I'm sure he'll understand," Jaune smiled cockily. "We are way more important to you than he is, after all."

"Don't overestimate yourself, Jaune," Weiss warned playfully. "You're not that high on my list. Certainly not higher than Neptune."

Ruby was about to point out that was an extremely mean thing to say, but before that, she realized Weiss had said nothing about her in specific. Ruby's eyes widened as she did a double take, then drew her cloak closer to herself to hide her burning cheeks.

"And what are _you_ smiling about?" Weiss turned to face her, raising an eyebrow.

"I, uh… heard you're a Grandmaster now!" Ruby blurted out. "That's super awesome!"

"Well, I'm not technically a Grandmaster _yet_. Winter still has to put the finishing touches on my training, so to speak, and put me through the final test. Only then I'll receive the title." Weiss crossed her arms smugly. "But yes. I am quite awesome."

"Hey, Ruby's awesome too!" Jaune interjected. "Did you see what she did? I mean, we all knew she could go all go glowy and stuff, but that was a whole other level!"

"It was very impressive," Weiss agreed. "There must be some way for you to master it, Ruby. Perhaps we should investigate… whatever it is you did."

Ruby nodded, though secretly, she wasn't eager at all to do anything like that ever again. Not after what she had been through to get there.

"And, to top it all off," Jaune said. "I killed a Grimm or two. If you think about it, all of us are masters in our own rights now!"

"I am in a good mood, so I'll agree, for now," Weiss replied. "We make an excellent team."

Ruby turned to look at the horizon. Somewhere out there, a whole continent away, the Fire Lord was sitting on her throne. Maybe she had already received news of the foiled invasion, or she was about to. Whatever the case, she wouldn't be pleased.

"We sure do," Ruby said. "And we're only going to get better."

* * *

Professor Peach came running up the stairs to her office. She was holding several scrolls in her hands, so many they threatened to escape her grasp and fall between the spaces between the steps. She really hoped that wouldn't happen – the last thing she wanted to do was to go all the way back down the Beacon Tower. She was way too old for that.

She couldn't slow down, though. She was just too excited about her findings. Years upon years of research had led her to this moment. It needed to be put to paper immediately, then brought back to Vale and the Queen. If she was right, this information could very well turn the tide of the war in their favor.

Finally, she reached her office, kicking the door open. Had she not been so agitated, she would have certainly noticed it was already open - the door she always kept shut, for security reasons.

Professor Peach raced to her desk and practically threw all the scrolls down on it, then took a blank one from a drawer and a pen from her box of utensils. She mixed it with ink quickly, then rested it against the paper, thinking of how to start her text.

Just as she began to form the first letter, something creaked behind her. Her pen hovered above the scroll as her blood ran cold. Slowly, Peach turned around.

"Found something interesting, professor?"

Sitting on the windowsill behind her was a young woman with raven hair and amber eyes, wearing a short red dress with the Fire Nation insignia emblazoned on its right side. She was swinging her legs leisurely, and she wore a sweet smile on her lips, but the bow and quiver on her back, along with the cruelty evident in her eyes, warned Peach not to treat her lightly.

"You shouldn't be here," Peach said firmly. "Get out now, and no harm will come to you."

"And why would I do that?" the stranger chuckled. "I'm right where I want to be."

"Take your chance. _Now_ ," Peach insisted. "I'm a professor by trade, but I was trained rigorously for years in the art of earthbending. This your final warning."

"Oh, professor. You're so amusing." This time, the girl laughed heartily. "Do you honestly think I would have come all the way here without knowing _everything_ about you?"

Peach growled, then started to raise her hand to bend the wall behind her. The stranger's eyes narrowed, and a moment later, Peach felt a sting on her wrist and an electric shock flowing down her body until it dispersed to the floor.

The stranger lowered her fingers and clucked her tongue. "Make another move like that, and the next lightning will not be so merciful," she said. "You must understand, professor. This isn't personal. But you have been researching some… delicate matters, for a very long time, and we aren't very comfortable with that."

"You mean studying the Grimm? Or more specifically…" Peach clenched her fists in rage. "How you lunatics control them?!"

"Strong words, professor. But… yes. You are more or less correct." The girl nodded. "Although I see it less as us controlling Grimm, but more as us working _together_."

"I don't care what you think," the professor said. "If you're going to kill me, just do it already. It's what you came here to do, isn't it?"

"Now, now. No need to be impatient. Let's talk, maybe we can reach an-"

A black bird flew through the window and landed on the girl's shoulder. It opened its beak, dropping a miniature scroll. The stranger opened and read it silently, while Peach stared at the bird, disturbed by its intense red eyes.

Finally, the stranger finished reading. She burned the parchment to a crisp, then looked at Peach. "Forgive me. There was a… change of plans, so to speak," she smiled. "I'm afraid we won't be having that talk, after all."

Peach's eyes widened. At that moment, she knew she had no chance of winning a fight, not against someone who could bend lightning so expertly. Her only option, then, was to bolt to the door and race down the stairs as fast as possible, and from there, make her escape.

She wasn't past her third step when an arrow penetrated her from the back, its arrowhead exiting from her chest, searing red. Peach gasped and fell to the floor, twitching for a while, then was still.

"Well, then." The girl dropped from the windowsill, landing gently on the floor of the office, and beat the dust of her dress, as if she hadn't just killed someone in cold blood. "Now that that's done, let's not tarry and get to the next assignment."

She held out her hand, and the bird landed on her fingers, chirping a terrifying song.

"We have a little dragon to catch."

**END OF BOOK ONE**


	21. Where the Grimm Things Are

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter One: Where the Grimm Things Are**

* * *

Ruby leaned against the railings of a bridge in the North Pole, admiring the view of the reconstructed city. Two weeks after the battle, it already looked like it had never happened.

It wasn't only rebuilt, though. Ruby could feel something different in the air. A sense of safety and peace that couldn't be tainted by any outside forces.

She couldn't feel a single Grimm lurking in the depths. They were all gone.

"You know this was only possible because of you, right?"

Ruby turned to look at Weiss, who had approached her from behind without being heard. Her hair was done in a ponytail far more elaborate than usual, and she was carrying her rapier at her waist.

Was she going somewhere? Without her? Ruby couldn't remember hearing anything about it, but what else could her appearance mean?

"The Grimm will resurface sometime, of course. But it will be years from now, hopefully decades," Weiss said, standing beside her. "When everyone forgets, and disaster strikes again."

"Forgets?" Ruby repeated. "Forgets what?"

"To be… good people. To treat each other well; acknowledge and respect the differences between us. That sort of thing," Weiss explained quietly. "You were a symbol of that. But I don't think if that was enough to save everyone."

Suddenly, the wind stopped blowing, and the ocean came to a standstill. The city was taken by silence. The only thing Ruby could hear was the beating of her own heart.

She felt something soft brush her left cheek, and when she turned to look, she was met by a pair of cold silver eyes.

A faint whisper. "You weren't enough to save me."

Ruby opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. She sunk through the bridge and fell in the canal below, a hundred invisible hands dragging her down into the darkness.

She was floating in the void, curled up and shivering, as red eyes flickered into existence all around her.

_is this what you dream of?_

_you think your light saved them_

_you think your light saved you_

_no,_ _**AVATAR** _

_you saw_

_now you will never escape_

* * *

Ruby sat up in her bed, gasping for air. The ever-present humming of the ship's motor was not enough to deafen the sound of her heart beating fast in her chest. She was soaked in sweat from head to toe, but she could feel a different liquid near her eyes.

"Don't… don't…" she said softly, trying to calm herself down before she had a full-blown panic attack. "It was just a dream. A bad memory. Think of… good things…"

She rested her head on her knees for a moment and took a deep breath, then jumped out of her bed. There was no way she would be able to fall back asleep any time soon, so she might as well get some fresh air.

Ruby walked to the door and reached for the doorknob, but a sense of dread halted her in place. Her eyes wandered to her staff, resting against her bedtable. In the blink of an eye, she took it, then exited her room.

She could hear the noise of a few people waking up in their rooms, but aside from that, it looked like everyone was still sleeping. Ruby stepped out into the deck, saluting to the captain's cabin briefly, where Port was, then walked to the prow of the ship.

Their journey had been uneventful so far. No underwater Grimm had attacked them, and they hadn't spotted a single Fire Nation ship since leaving the North Pole. When they had passed by the coast of Haven three days ago, it no longer held any signs of Fire Nation presence. At the pace they were going, captain Port predicted they would arrive at their drop-off point near Vale in just another week.

Ruby found herself at a loss, not knowing what she wanted. She detested wasting the days away on the ship, when so many people out there needed her help. But, for some reason, with every day that passed, she dreaded the moment her feet would touch land more and more.

If only she could sleep well, maybe she could sort out her thoughts. But as it was, the only thing she could do was watch the waves go by…

* * *

Taiyang tossed a peanut in his mouth and munched on it intently, closing his eyes and joining his hands in front of him, his whole being focused on tasting the tiny snack. The saleswoman which had offered him the peanut slowly leaned towards him, her eyes widening and her knuckles turning white as she grasped the corners of her stall.

Finally, Taiyang swallowed and opened a wide smile. "Delicious!" he declared, giving her two thumbs up. "Was that chocolate on the inside?"

"Yes! Yes, it was!" The saleswoman threw her arms up and screeched in pure joy. Taiyang took a step back, a tad frightened by her scandalous behavior. "Wanna buy a bag? Two bags! Three bags, I'll give you a discount!"

"Woah, there! I don't have that much money to throw around, miss," he said firmly, crossing his arms. A few seconds passed before he pointed to a bag of peanuts. "One, please?"

After finishing his purchase, Taiyang walked away from the stall and took a look around. Him and Yang had disembarked on the coast a few days before, and they had been making their way south since then. This town had caught their attention today because of a traveling group of merchants passing by, and so far, Taiyang considered the diversion very worthwhile.

"Hey, dad!" He heard Yang yell just behind him. "Look what I got!"

Taiyang turned around and was alarmed by the sight of his daughter. "That… Yang," He slapped his own forehead in dismay. "That's not what I had in mind when I suggested a change of wardrobe."

Yang looked down at her new top and skirt, then crossed her arms and glared at him. "Like you have any taste in clothing!"

"It's not about taste, or you looking good," Taiyang said, then groaned. "Actually, it is about that. The idea was doing away with all that Fire Nation stuff. You know, so people wouldn't look at us twice? Now they're going to look at you _multiple_ times."

Yang tilted her head dubiously, then gasped. "Oh. I get it now," she shrugged. "Meh, I don't think that's a problem. If I look hot, people will never suspect I'm Fire Nation!"

Taiyang just shook his head, not knowing how to even begin arguing against that logic.

"Anyway," Yang said, assuming a more serious tone of voice. "We should probably get going. This place is great and all, but we didn't come back to the Earth Kingdom to have fun."

"Sure. It's all work and no playing with Miss Yang, I know," Taiyang said. "If we get going now, we can probably make it to our destination by tomorrow afternoon."

"You still haven't told me where we are going," Yang noted pointedly.

"Tough luck, kid. I'll tell you when we get there."

The answer annoyed her, but Yang decided to be patient for just a little more time. She wasn't a child, after all, and she trusted her father to not lead them into a death trap.

The two left the busy town center, never having noticed the raven-haired woman that had been watching them from the shadows of an alleyway, the tip of an arrow glinting in the dark.

* * *

Ruby sat cross-legged on the ship's deck, breathing in and out slowly with her eyes shut. She could feel everything around her – the rumbling of the ship in movement; the splashing of the waves and the occasional drop of water that landed near her; Jaune's light pacing in front of her…

Well, it wasn't exactly light, actually. It was more like a Boarbatusk's stomping around. Ruby opened one eye to look at him accusingly. "Jaune. You're making a lot of noise. I can't concentrate like that."

"Oh, sorry." Jaune stopped pacing immediately, standing as stiff as a statue. "Better?"

"Almost too good," Ruby said, closing her eye. "Now, let's try again…"

She let her mind be emptied of all stray thoughts, her being transcending her body and becoming one with the world around her. The coolness of the air on her skin; the pull and push of the ocean; the warmth in the showering sunlight. There were no more bounds to constrict her presence on Remnant.

Ruby basked in that feeling of freedom for a moment, then focused on herself, and her heightened presence became like a single source of white light. She eased herself into the light, grasping for that power, the power she had wielded at the North Pole.

Her hands closed around something, and she felt waves of unbridled energy wash over her spirited form. She pulled it towards her, closer and closer, the whiteness engulfing her…

A scream of dark, unfathomable hatred pierced through her mind, flooding her every sense and launching her loose in the nothingness. Ruby gasped and opened her eyes, suddenly back in her physical body.

"Well," Jaune said sheepishly. "That looked like a bunch of nothing." He noticed how agitated she was and crouched before her, looking concerned. "You okay, Ruby?"

"I-I'm fine," Ruby lied through gritted teeth. "I can't find the… _thing_. I guess it only happens when I really need it."

"That sounds about as annoying and convenient as anything Avatar." Jaune grinned. "Maybe you should rest up a bit. Or we could get a game going, maybe invite Weiss to join us?"

Ruby looked at Weiss, who was standing near the prow of the ship by herself. Ever since they'd left the North Pole, she hadn't been very talkative. Ruby didn't know what was going on with her, but she didn't want to bother her in trying to find out.

Ruby looked back at Jaune, and a question she had been mulling over for weeks resurfaced in her mind. He was the one who had rescued her from wherever she had gone to during the battle with the Fire Nation. He had only been there for a few moments, but Ruby wondered how much he had seen and heard. Maybe the answer could shed some light on the issues she was having.

But… she didn't want to drag him into her mess. It was, as he liked to say, Avatar stuff - except this time it wasn't a joke. There was something very dangerous happening with her, and the last thing she wanted was for him to get hurt because she'd asked him for help.

"Maybe another time," she said, standing up. "I think I'm just gonna lie down. I'll see you at dinner."

He watched her leave with a worried expression on his face. "Okay," he muttered. "Whatever you need."

* * *

"You could at least give me a hint," Yang said as she dropped another log on their campfire, sending embers scattering through the clearing in the woods. "I mean, I know you're gonna contact Uncle Qrow somehow. I don't see the point of you holding out on me."

Taiyang groaned. Sometimes he forgot how stubborn Yang could be. It only made sense, considering who her parents were.

"Listen. I'm not doing this to mess with you," he said. "It's your uncle. He wouldn't be happy if I started telling you all his secrets."

"But I'm his niece!" Yang exclaimed. "What, does he think I'm some kind of double agent? That I'm going to run back home and share everything I learned with mom?"

"Of course not. But you have to understand, Yang, the man runs a _huge_ rebel organization," Taiyang said. "He has allies that both the Fire Nation _and_ the Earth Kingdom would love to get their hands on. He has to be extremely careful with how he handles all kinds of information, because one wrong message heard by the wrong ears, and someone might very well die."

"Dad. Are you trying to teach me about spies?" Yang rolled her eyes. "We're in the middle of the woods. There's no way anybody's listening in on-" Suddenly, he screamed at the top of his lungs and made to lunge at her. Yang yelped and jumped to her feet. "Y-you jerk! Why would do that?!"

"Because, my sweet little daughter, you can never be too sure about what's going to happen next," Taiyang stated gleefully. "A Grimm might jump you. A troop of soldiers might come trampling over our campfire. A spy might appear out of thin-"

His speech was interrupted by the noise of something sharp cutting through the air, followed by a dull _thump_ nearby. The two looked over at a tree at the edge of the clearing and saw an arrow embedded in it.

"The next one goes into the princess's forehead," a female voice reached them. "Up. Hands above your heads."

Taiyang stood and raised his hands, and Yang followed shortly, though she was none too happy about it. They heard the slightest rustling of leaves, then finally, their assailant came out of the shadows. Her amber eyes slowly examined the two of them, all the while keeping her arrow nocked on her bow and aimed at Yang.

"Good. Keep following orders, and no one will get hurt."

"Lady," Yang spoke up, glaring daggers at her. "Just who the hell are you?"

"You wound me, princess." The stranger faked a pout. "And I was so looking forward to us meeting again… But you, consort," Her eyes darted to Taiyang. "You know who I am. We were always such good friends, weren't we?"

"Cinder Fall. I remember you," Taiyang said. "One of the Fire Lord's closest. Showed up right around the time she really went off the rails. What does that tell you about her, Yang?"

"I don't know, dad, the arrow was already a very clear sign of _crazy_ ," Yang pointed out. "Just tell us what you want already and get on your way."

Cinder smirked, lowering her bow a bit. "It's simple. You are my prisoners now, to be taken back to the capital. Be sensible, and no harm shall befall you." She paused. "Was that clear enough?"

Her speech was followed by a drought of words, as she stared at the two of them and they stared right back.

Taiyang considered their options, the precious few they had. Surrendering would be the least painful, but only for now. Fighting? They had the numbers, but he had both heard about and witnessed Cinder Fall's legendary firebending prowess. Whatever way the battle ended, it probably wouldn't be worth it. So the only remaining option was…

His planning came to a halt when he saw, in the corner of his vision, Yang tensing up for an attack. He held back a string of curses. It was so obvious, especially for someone as wicked as Cinder.

The arrow went flying without warning. Taiyang kicked Yang in the side, just narrowly shoving her off the projectile's path, then turned and swung a fist. The campfire burst in height and fell upon Cinder, but she parted it with seemingly no effort and nocked another arrow.

"Run!" Taiyang shot a fireball at Cinder, then turned and sprinted into the woods.

Yang followed right behind him. An arrow whizzed by her, almost penetrating her shoulder. "Where are we going?!"

"I don't know, I'm improvising!" Taiyang yelled. He jumped and ignited the lower half of his right leg, then kicked at a tree. The trunk creaked and bent, then began to fall to the side. He slipped under it, pulling Yang along, then continued running.

Cinder jumped on top of the trunk, but halted there, holding an arrow loosely on the bowstring, and watched the pair disappear in the woods. It would be child's play to track them down, but she wasn't in a hurry.

"Run, little dragon," she whispered, smiling. "I do so love a challenge…"

* * *

Ruby opened her eyes to utter darkness. She didn't move for a while, wondering why she had woken up in the middle of the night. But then she noticed…

She wasn't in her room.

"Great," she muttered. "Here we go again."

The blackness of the void began speeding past her at a dizzying speed, or maybe she was the one moving. Whatever the case, it didn't last long, and she soon was floating in place, forced to face the red eyes that kept appearing without end.

"Please…" She lowered her head and tried to close her eyes, but they wouldn't obey her. "Just let me wake up."

The dread hit her, the same feeling that always preceded the voices. She took in a deep breath and braced herself for what came next.

" _Enough_."

She raised her head and saw a shining figure standing in front of her, facing the red eyes bravely.

"This has gone on long enough."

Ozpin waved his hand, and the void spiraled around them, the red eyes fading out of existence in the maelstrom. Then it came to an end, and they were standing on the courtyard of the Southern Air Temple.

"Ozpin!" Ruby squealed, jumping to hug him. "I tried to talk to you so many times! Where have you been?!"

"Where all the past Avatars are." Ozpin tapped her forehead. "I was only having some difficulty reaching you."

"Oh." Ruby frowned. "Because of… _them_. The evil things."

"No. Solely because of you."

Ruby stared at him in confusion, and he only smiled kindly in return. For a brief instant, the Temple was encased in a block of ice. "What do you mean? Is… Am I doing something wrong?"

"No, Ruby. Fear is a powerful emotion. It can overwhelm even the mightiest of warriors - even an Avatar," Ozpin said. "Worry not, Ruby. You are not haunted by demonic beings or anything of the like. You are simply… afraid."

Ruby nodded slowly, but there was still doubt in her eyes. The Temple disappeared, and suddenly they were on the underwater caverns of the North Pole, standing in the middle of hundreds of black crystal shards.

"What did I see, then?" Ruby asked quietly. "Because I know it was real. It wasn't like the dreams I've been having since then."

"We don't know much about that plane, Ruby. Only the bravest of us ever dared explore it," Ozpin said. "It might be where the Grimm first came from, when in the distant past, they somehow found a way of entering our world. What you saw, Ruby, might very well be the most ancient Grimm to have ever existed."

"They spoke to me," she whispered.

"Yes. That's the tricky thing about Grimm, isn't it? It is so easy to view them as mindless beasts…" Ozpin shook his head. "When in truth, they are devilishly smart."

He crouched down and picked up a crystal shard. He tossed it to Ruby, who grabbed it in midair and examined it close to her eye. It was looked so light and frail, but something about it held untellable depth.

"You did something unprecedented by shattering this crystal. The Grimm have stopped being born in the North Pole, at least for now," Ozpin said. "You have already distinguished yourself as an Avatar, and your story has only just begun."

"I didn't do it alone," Ruby pointed out. "You were there with me. You, and all our past lives."

"Yes. The Avatar State," Ozpin nodded. "To become one with the whole Avatar cycle, from the very beginning, to you. The knowledge and power shared… It is our most formidable tool. Yet at the same time, the most dangerous."

"Because we lose control? We can't choose when to use it?" Ruby asked.

"No," Ozpin was silent for a moment. "Because should we die while in the Avatar State, the cycle will forever be destroyed."

Ruby just stared at him, slowly coming to terms with the revelation. After a while, she crossed her arms and glared at him.

"Was all of this supposed to cheer me up? Because it didn't!" she said. "I mean, I'm not that scared anymore. Now I'm just upset!"

"Apologies. But I didn't come here solely to answer the questions you had," Ozpin said, laying a hand on her shoulder. "Ruby, you must learn to distance yourself from all of this. You are the Avatar first, but you are also a girl at the youth of her days. Take a step back every once in a while, and find yourself, wherever you are. Don't be the Avatar. Be… Ruby."

With that, he patted her on the shoulder lovingly, then disappeared. Ruby hung around for a while, asking herself if she too would be so cryptic and dramatic when her turn came to mentor the next Avatar.

* * *

Yang slid to a halt and bent forward, resting her hands on her knees. She was out of breath after running for so long, and her father was in no better shape, having stopped too.

"Do you think… we lost her?" Yang asked.

"Nope. I can guarantee we didn't lose her," Taiyang wiped the sweat from his brow. "For whatever twisted reason, she chose not to pursue us."

Despite how hot she was from their escape, Yang felt a shiver make its way through her body. She had never heard her father talk this way about anyone before. He was a cautious man, of course, and he always tried find peaceful solutions to every problem, but now…

Now he was scared.

"What do we do now?" Yang asked. "She'll attack us again, for sure."

"Yes. And she might not be as merciful next time," Taiyang said. "We can't afford to lead her to Qrow and his group. That would be a complete disaster. But we can't run forever either"

"Maybe we can find somewhere safe to hide from her. Somewhere big and with lots of people," Yang smiled. "Atlas! It's not _that_ far away, right?"

"Sheesh. We can get there, sure, but we'll need transportation."

Yang's eyes lit up with excitement. "We're gonna buy another Beaky?!"

"Sure, sweetheart," Taiyang said tiredly, laying down on the ground. "But for now… Let's sleep. Hopefully we won't be in chains in the morning."

* * *

Ruby woke up to someone knocking on her door. She rubbed her eyes and kicked her blanket off of her, then skipped to the door fast and opened it.

Weiss stood in the hallway in her nightgown, hair undone and eyes that looked puffed up and red. Ruby froze for an instant, shocked by the sight, then took a step back.

"Uh, hi," she said. "Come in?"

"Thanks, Ruby," Weiss spoke so quietly, Ruby almost didn't hear her. "I didn't wake you up, I hope?"

"No, no. I'm a regular stay-up-late kinda gal, for sure," Ruby blabbered out without thinking.

She could tell Weiss knew she was lying, but the princess didn't look upset. Well, not at her, at least. "I… I realize this is unusual. But… I've been dealing with this alone for weeks now, and…" Weiss paused to take in a shaky breath. "And I remembered that day we fought for… I don't know what reason. But it was bad. I was so upset, and you were also…"

Weiss sat down at the edge of her bed, and Ruby followed hesitantly.

"But then at night… We talked to each other, remember?" Weiss smiled a bit. "We made up. And that was honestly one of the best moments of my life. I knew then that I could trust you with anything."

"Alright…" Ruby said slowly. "And that's important because…?"

"…I need a moment like that again, or else I'm going to snap."

Before Ruby could even begin to ask her what she meant by that, Weiss leaned forward and covered her face with her hands. A violent sob shook her shoulders and back.

Ruby stared with her mouth agape. She had seen Weiss happy, sad, furious… but she had never imagined her like this, on the verge of breaking.

A pang of guilt hit her as she realized she had somehow not seen this coming for _weeks_. Because she had been so focused on herself, on how to achieve the Avatar State at will, and the nightmares plaguing her at night, she had ignored her best friend and she had suffered for it.

What had Ozpin said? _Take a step back every once in a while, and find yourself, wherever you are_.

She had a hundred lifetimes' memories stored inside her head, and she could bend the ocean and sky to her will. She was the last of her people. She was the world's beacon of hope against war and the Grimm.

She had a best friend who called himself a warrior and didn't know how to swing a sword right half of the time, but somehow always came up with a plan to save the day. And she had another best friend who was cold only on the outside, and was also her teacher and guardian and role model and so, so much more…

There were dozens of things that mattered to her, that spoke to her soul and filled her with purpose. And each day, those things shifted around, and Ruby never knew what truly was the most important. But today…

Today she knew what really mattered.

 _Be Ruby_.

"Weiss." Ruby leaned to the side and wrapped her arms around the princess. "Tell me what's going on with you."

"But… I feel so silly," Weiss muttered. "Coming to your door and dropping all of this on you. Crying like a… a…"

"Weiss, if you keep crying like that and don't start talking, I am gonna start crying too." Ruby's eyes narrowed threateningly. "And then we're gonna have a real problem on our hands."

Weiss sighed, then lied down on her back and started talking.

"For a while, back in the North Pole, I had everything," she said. "I was in my real home. I had my father's _tenuous_ approval, but approval nonetheless. I had Winter's support. I had you and Jaune, and…" she blushed. "And Neptune, who is my boyfriend… kind of…"

"And doesn't know how to swim." Ruby felt the need to add.

"Yes. That's important," Weiss nodded solemnly. "Anyway. For the first time in _years_ , everything was fine. But you can't have everything forever, I guess." She curled her fists and sat back up. "And now father expects me to act as some kind of ambassador for him?! He didn't have the decency of congratulating me on becoming a Grandmaster, but he didn't hesitate on dropping this responsibility on my lap!"

She shook her head. " _Be sure to represent us well. We need the Earth Queen's support to turn the tide of the war_ ," she said bitterly. "Of course it would be me. I've already kickstarted one war, why not give another one a helpful shove?"

"I don't think he ever blamed you for the invasion, Weiss," Ruby pointed out. "He's just a little rough with stuff, you know? And pragmagmatic."

"Pragmatic," Weiss corrected. "And whatever do you mean by that?"

"Well, who better to represent the Water Tribes than you? Here, let's make a list of all the awesome things you are," Ruby suggested. "The Avatar's personal waterbending teacher. The youngest Grandmaster ever. A freaking _princess_. And… uh, you look nice, on top of all that!"

"Oh, yes. I look _nice_. You are such a charmer, Avatar," Weiss chuckled. "I suppose you have a point or two. Still, the situation could have been handled better."

Ruby shrugged. She wasn't exactly qualified to judge how those official matters of state should be handled.

"You know," Ruby said. "We could have brought Neptune with us. There's enough room on the ship."

"I know. But…" Weiss sighed. "It wouldn't feel right."

"It wouldn't feel right?" Ruby repeated confusedly.

"We already have our little group. The Avatar, the princess, and the dork," Weiss explained. "We can't have _two_ dorks, and I couldn't very well leave Jaune all alone in the North Pole. Some of the girls were starting to get really annoyed at him…"

Ruby crossed her arms and stared at her dubiously. "Or maybe you were just embarrassed of having him around us all the time…"

"N-no! I'm never embarrassed!" Weiss took a pillow and tossed it a Ruby's face. "Go to sleep!"

"Jeez. Rude, much?" Ruby giggled. "I'm not gonna open the door next time."

Weiss shook her head amusedly, then stood up. She went to the door and touched the doorknob, turning briefly to look back at Ruby.

"Thanks for… listening," she said awkwardly. "Although, now that I look back, my problems sound so unimportant."

"Hey. They're important to me," Ruby stated. "…Same time next week?"

"Are we establishing a night for girl talk?" Weiss' expression was of absolute mortification. "I never thought this would happen. I never _wanted_ this to happen…" She breathed out heavily. "Yes. Same time next week."

She exited the room swiftly, leaving behind a very content Ruby.

"Wait a minute…" she muttered to herself, realizing she didn't actually know what this _girl talk_ stuff consisted of. She had a vague idea, but that was probably just wishful thinking.

Probably…

"Welp." Ruby laid down on her bed, crossing her fingers behind her head. "Just another challenge for the great and wise Avatar!"

She closed her eyes.

"Hey, Ozpin, do you have any idea what girl talk means?"


	22. The Beginning of Something Worse

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Two: The Beginning of Something Worse**

* * *

Gray clouds covered the skies, leaving little room for light to trickle down to Remnant. The ocean was unruly, waves rising high and causing great splashes when they came crashing back down. Thunder boomed and lightning crackled, flashes of white flooding the horizon.

Captain Port was yelling orders nonstop, directing his crew to keep the ship steady and at the speed they needed to reach their destination. Jaune stood at the prow, peering at the unruly waters ahead of them, while Weiss paced near him, wearing a frown on her brow.

"Is this gonna be as bad as it looks?" Jaune asked meekly. "Please tell me it's not. I can barely hold my stomach together when things are normal…"

"Do I look like a fortuneteller to you, Jaune?" Weiss hissed. Her nerves were getting to her already, and the storm hadn't even started.

"Aw, man," Jaune gulped, resting his hands on his belly. "But we _can_ make it to land before it gets super bad, right?"

"That's what we're counting on," the princess said bitterly. "Please be a gentleman and grab a bucket for yourself. The captain's men are getting tired of cleaning up your… ahem… _messes_."

Jaune nodded embarrassedly, then walked away to comply to her wishes.

Weiss leaned on the railings and let out a shaky breath. Her eyes followed the movement of something huge and dark beneath the surface. A shiver ran down her spine, and she tensed in preparation for combat, but the creature continued on its way and disappeared after a few seconds.

She would be much more at ease if Ruby were with her at the moment, but the redhead hadn't stepped out of her room for the entirety of the day. Weiss had tried getting her to come out, but she had refused, saying she was feeling bad – and after taking a look at her, Weiss had no doubt she was telling the truth. Ruby looked the way she always did when a large number of Grimm was nearby, ready to attack, except this time it was worse than ever.

But it had been hours now, and no Grimm had done anything further than swim near the ship. Yet Ruby was still like that. It wasn't the Grimm, she had said after Weiss had gone to talk to her again. It was something else. Something worse.

Weiss felt water falling on her face and her hair. She looked up and noticed that, finally, the storm was beginning, in the form of a light drizzle. She cursed under her breath and raised one hand, diverting the water around her to keep herself dry.

Thunder boomed again, and then a lightning bolt struck the ocean, dangerously close, sending a massive wave against the side of the ship. Weiss' vision was blinded by whiteness for a moment.

"Oh, crap!" she heard a sailor scream from the crow's nest. "I think I see something! Captain! It's a ship!"

Weiss narrowed her eyes, trying to see better, but she could barely see anything with the raging waves on the way.

Lightning struck again, and again, and again, three consecutive bolts that left Weiss stumbling with her hands covering her eyes. Her knees buckled as the hull of the ship shuddered, but she held her ground and slowly opened her eyes.

She saw something worse than Grimm. Without missing a beat, she spun around and bolted inside to get Ruby.

"It's not just a ship!" the sailor shouted. "It's… it's the whole Fire Nation navy!"

* * *

"They aren't fleeing from Grimm, are they, Dad?"

"No. They're fleeing from something worse."

The traffic on the road to Atlas was heavy. Travelers heading north were bountiful, from simple citizens taking with them all they could carry, merchants with carriages full of goods, and soldiers acting as escorts for more important families.

Yang and Taiyang rode against the flow, mounted on their newly-acquired ostrich-horses. The princess kept looking over her shoulder, expecting to find Cinder stalking them at any time, but she was never there. But Yang knew better than to let her guard down so easily, especially after how their first meeting had gone.

"It's been days," Yang said in a quiet voice, riding closer to her father. "What is she waiting for?"

"A better opportunity. There's too many people around," Taiyang replied. "Once we're alone, the game is on."

"How considerate of her," Yang said. "Can we make it to Atlas before she attacks?"

"No," Taiyang shook his head. "We'll have to fight, harder than we've ever fought before." He turned to look at her. "But don't worry. Your old man still has a few tricks up his sleeve."

Yang nodded unsurely, then looked to the east, where storm clouds were gathering above the ocean. Yang wasn't afraid of storms, but something about this one filled her with a sense of dread.

"You think we're gonna get caught up in that?" she asked. "It looks bad. I'm not sure if Beaky and Daddy Beaky can hold up in that."

"No, it's too far away. We're safe," Taiyang said. "That storm is someone else's problem."

* * *

The drizzle had turned into a full-blown storm now, and the sea was reacting in accord, rising and falling in waves that threatened to turn the ship. Day resembled night as the sun was blocked by layers upon layers of clouds, the only source of light being the frequent lightning bolts and the flames on the Fire Nation ships in front of them.

"This is impossible," Weiss said, clenching her fists at her sides. "This _should_ be impossible! Just _how_ does the Fire Nation have so many vessels after their trashing in the North Pole?"

"Maybe they had even more ships, we just didn't know it?" Jaune suggested meekly, holding onto his bucket for dear life.

"If that's true, the Fire Nation is even more power-hungry than we thought." Weiss shook her head. "So many ships… And to think that all of them could be filled with soldiers – firebenders, at that."

"It's an all-out invasion," Ruby muttered, drawing her cloak closely around her. "They want to take the Earth Kingdom once and for all."

She walked to the prow and looked at the not-so-distant battleships, holding her staff at her side. In that moment, more than when she had first discovered about the war or during the invasion of the North Pole, it was clear to her friends how burdened Ruby really was.

Weiss took a step towards her, but stopped when Captain Port appeared at her side, looking flustered and weary. "Princess," he said hoarsely. "We are pulling close to the coast as soon as we can. We can drop you and your companions there. That's not the original plan, but we can't risk going any further."

"I understand," Weiss said. "It will take longer, and we won't know the way very well, but we can make it to Atlas, and then Vale. We can _all_ make it."

"I'm afraid we won't be going with you, princess," Port shook his head slowly. "You cannot afford to have so many people travelling with you. It would paint a bigger target on your back, and on top of that, it would slow you down. Besides, a true sailor never abandons his ship and his crew."

"But that's madness! You can't turn back, the Fire Nation will surround you no matter how fast you go!" Weiss yelled. "Let go of your pride for a moment and come with us, captain!"

"It's not only a matter of time," Port said gravely. "It's a matter of giving the world the best chance it's got."

Weiss groaned in frustration, tears stinging her eyes. They had gone through this already, and everything had turned out fine in the end, but that didn't give her hope, it only filled her with cynicism – things were bound to go wrong sometime, and today was ripe for tragedy.

Suddenly, Ruby turned around and walked back to them. Weiss grit her teeth and pointed at her. "Don't you dare-"

"If you won't turn this ship around," Ruby started bravely, facing Port. "Then go at full speed. Drop off Weiss and Jaune where we were supposed to. I'll slow the navy down, so you and your crew can keep going and stop somewhere safe to the south."

Port shifted his weight between his feet, then spoke reluctantly. "Fine. If that is your will, Avatar, we will do so."

Weiss screamed in frustration and threw her arms up. Ruby reached to lay a hand on her shoulder, but Weiss slapped her hand away. "Don't," the princess said coldly. "You keep doing this. Kind words and gestures are not going to fix the fact that you're putting yourself in unbelievable danger _again_."

"But Weiss-"

"She's right," Jaune interrupted. "Do what you think you have to do, Ruby. But we don't have to pretend we're okay with it."

Weiss stomped away, the pouring rain around her reacting strangely to her rage. Jaune gave Ruby a sad smile, then followed after her.

Ruby bit her lip, her resolve wavering from a moment, but then she looked at Port and, behind him, his crew working tirelessly to keep the ship running.

"I can't change your minds. I know how important this is to you," Ruby said. "So, come on. Let's plan how this is gonna go!"

* * *

There wasn't a soul left in the village by the time Yang and Taiyang got there. The buildings were all vacant, and the fountain at the center was running dry, presumably having been deactivated by the villagers before they fled.

"Well, this is isn't foreboding at all," Yang said, leaning closer to her mount's head. "I don't get it. Why would these people leave everything they know behind? The war has been going on for fifteen years. You would think they would have fled a long time ago…"

"Things are changing, Yang. The war is reaching a new height, and the people can tell," Taiyang said. "It's one thing to hear about territorial struggles around Atlas and to send a few young men and women every year to be soldiers of their own will. But having an army of thousands marching through your homes, murdering and pillaging? That's something else entirely."

"Seems like the Earth Kingdom could do a better job of protecting their countrymen," Yang muttered.

"Yeah, well, they have had their plates full for more than a decade now, and _we_ keep giving them more food to hold," he sighed. "And it's not even good food. Something like… broccoli soup. _Bleh_."

Yang looked around, a flame of contempt burning inside her. It wasn't an uncommon feeling of late. Every time she came across these sorry scenes, her anger at her own country came bursting to the surface. How could she have been so ignorant to let these kinds of things happen for so long?

"We'll make this right," she said.

"We will," Taiyang agreed. "But first, we are going to rest. I don't think anyone would mind if we borrowed a couple beds overnight at the inn." He turned to stare at her knowingly. "Don't be stubborn. I can see you're almost falling out of your saddle."

"That's an exaggeration," Yang mumbled. "But alright. Beaky and Daddy Beaky need to rest too, anyway."

"You always were an animal lover."

They hopped off their ostriches and tied them to a post, then entered the town's inn. Taiyang gestured for Yang to stay at the entrance, then went to explore the place quietly to make sure they were alone.

He returned a couple of minutes later, looking relieved. "Everything's fine. The rooms upstairs look very cozy."

"We can't get too comfortable," Yang noted. "There's a crazy firebender lady hunting us, remember?"

"Now that you mention it, yes, I do remember," Taiyang sighed theatrically. "Curse my ailing memory."

"You're such a joker," Yang giggled. She had been on edge for so long, letting her guard down felt amazing. "Could you take this seriously, please? I don't wanna die in my sleep."

"I promise that won't happen," Taiyang said. "We'll take turns standing guard, okay? I'll take first."

"Okay. But don't go and let me sleep because of some stupid fatherly nonsense," Yang crossed her arms. "Understood?"

"Crystal clear, princess," Taiyang swore. He had no intention of waking her up.

* * *

"Miss Ruby, we are getting close!" Captain Port shouted over the sound of the storm. "Soon, it will be time for you to go!"

"Got it!" Ruby replied, jumping to the top of the railing, balancing herself carefully even as the ship rocked dangerously. She looked at the Fire Nation battleships coming from every direction, threatening to block their way. "I'm going! Good luck, captain!"

"Good luck to you too, Avatar!" The captain saluted her, and what little of his crew wasn't otherwise occupied followed suit.

Ruby nodded, then jumped off the ship. She held her staff above her and directed the winds to carry her up, up, up, until she was hovering far above the ocean. Then she sent herself soaring forward and closed her eyes.

When she opened them again, they were glowing like a lighthouse in the night.

 _Hello, Ruby. Getting yourself into trouble again, I see_.

"You know me too well, Ozpin!" Ruby spoke in a thousand voices, then dropped down. She spun once, carrying her momentum into a swing of her staff, and a huge wave came crashing down on the first Fire Nation ships she saw, sending off-direction and slamming against other vessels.

She heard screams coming from the ship, then suddenly, a stream of fire came her way, barely missing her. _I would like to remind you that, as powerful as you are right now, you are also at your most vulnerable_.

"I know, I know," Ruby muttered. "But how else am I gonna do this?"

 _By being creative. Don't grow to rely on the Avatar state, Ruby. It isn't safe_.

Ruby grunted, then looked for Port's ship. It was racing by the coast pretty fast, but a couple of Fire Nation ships was quickly coming to block the way.

Ruby surged closer and gestured with her staff, bringing the ocean up between Port and the enemy ships, forming a sort of liquid wall to divide them. Port continued going, successfully slipping past. That head start would be enough for them to make it safely if the Fire Nation gave chase.

 _Good. Now you should head back to your friends. No doubt, they are worried about you_.

"No way!" Ruby yelled. "With this power, I can stop the invasion before it even begins!"

 _Ruby, don't_ -

She shut Ozpin's and every other Avatar's voices out, leaving her mind empty of all thoughts, even her own. Acting almost purely on instinct, she closed in on the bulk of the navy and started waterbending in huge proportions, causing chaos and disarray that no other bender, even Grandmasters like Weiss and Winter, could hope to accomplish.

Fire continued to be tossed her way, but Ruby dodged with extreme ease, sometimes dispersing the projectiles with airbending. True to her words, the invasive force was starting to look like a mess of epic proportions. It would take hours, if not days, for whoever was heading it to get it back to proper shape and resume their advance.

As she soared over the ships, raising a hand to unleash another waterbending attack, she was suddenly struck by fire – fire she had never seen coming, for it was the same shade of black the sky was right now. The glow in her eyes faded, and she started to fall.

Ruby swung her staff wildly, trying to regain altitude, but her airbending simply didn't come out. Tears formed in her eyes. She had never felt so helpless before. This couldn't be happening - who was she without her bending?!

Moments before she would hit the deck the ship below her, a swing of her staff finally produced a rush of air that slowed down her fall somewhat, but it was not enough to stop it completely. Ruby crashed against the metallic floor of the deck and lay still for a moment, her staff rolling away from her reach. She groaned in pain, not finding the strength to stand back up.

"Here, Avatar," a strange, yet somehow familiar voice called faintly to her. "Take my hand."

Bracing against the deck beneath her, Ruby mustered all her strength to look up… and met eyes with Fire Lord Raven Branwen.

* * *

Yang sat up straight, her eyes snapping open suddenly. Silence permeated the room, but she could swear she had heard something. The creak of wood, a soft step. The faint breathing of a third person.

She looked to her father, who was sitting just beside the locked door. They locked eyes, and she recognized that he too knew something was off.

The steps became perfectly audible, the stranger having reached their floor. They stopped just outside their room, then… they heard the sound of something sliding down the wooden door, and the thump of someone sitting down.

"I have no ill intent towards you two, you know?" Cinder said, perfectly calm. "I'd like to remind you that I never tried to harm you without provocation. You forced my hand when you refused to comply to my orders."

"Oh, that's precious," Yang spat, watching her father getting up slowly and heading for the window. "If I remember correctly, you announced yourself by _shooting an arrow_ , then _pointing your bow at me_ and _threating my life_."

"True. But can you blame me?" Cinder sighed. "Even for traitors, you have quite the reputation for being hostile towards your countrymen. Roman Torchwick sends his regards."

"It's not my fault Torchwick died. I never planned on killing him," Yang hissed. "The Grimm got to him, okay?"

Taiyang paused for a moment, his eyes twitching anxiously, and Yang sent him a glare, telling him to continue whatever he was doing. He mouthed an apology, then laid his hands carefully on the window.

"Whatever you say, princess. Just like the man himself, the matter of Torchwick's death is of no importance," Cinder said. "If you truly feel so threatened by me, ask yourself, why are we talking right now? Why aren't you dead where you slept?"

"Because you're a psychopath who likes to show off to her prey before getting to the nasty business?" Yang guessed.

"If you knew me, you would know I am actually quite modest," Cinder chuckled. "The answer is, _I don't want to kill you_. Truly, I don't. It's against my orders." She paused. "Well, your father is free game, but I know you'd cause even me even more trouble if I took him out… so I won't."

"Oh, okay. I guess we're fine then!" Yang said in a sweet voice. "How about I open the door, then we can braid each other's hairs and giggle about our crushes?"

"As a grown woman, I don't have any crushes," Cinder voiced quietly.

"Well, neither do I!" Yang exclaimed furiously.

Taiyang finishing fidgeting with the window, successfully unlocking it and opening it fully. Unfortunately, that caused a rather noticeable noise. Yang's eyes widened, and Taiyang cursed under his breath.

At the other side of the door, Cinder got up and sighed audibly. "I tried."

Taiyang jumped off the window, followed fast by his daughter. They broke their fall by rolling on the ground, then got up and raced towards the post which they had leashed their ostrich-horses to.

"Wait," Taiyang said, looking around. "Where are them?"

"No!" Yang yelled. "What did she do to them? Did she _kill_ them?"

Cinder appeared on the window, aiming her bow. "I set them loose." She let go, and the arrow pierced a post just beside Yang's head. "It's not too late. All you need to do is stop resisting futilely and let me take you to the Fire Lord."

"You can take my dead body to her!" Yang shouted, sending a fireball her way.

Cinder hopped off the window, landing on the ground gracefully. Yang and her father gathered close, standing with their backs to each other, but still turned towards their enemy.

"We can't run," he whispered.

"Of course we can't." A flame sparked in Yang's eyes. "Like you said, we fight harder than we've ever fought before."

Together, they stepped forward and unleashed a barrage of fire at Cinder, who somersaulted over it, spinning in the air and landing on top of the dry fountain. She drew and released an arrow, forcing them to separate.

They shared a quick glance, then ran in different directions, circling around Cinder from both sides and sending more fire her way. Cinder backflipped off the top of the fountain and, while still in midair, threw her bow away. She landed on her back and began to spin, holding herself above the ground with her hands, while producing tendrils of fire with her legs.

Yang jumped behind cover, while Taiyang fought back against the tendrils with fire of his own. He stepped towards her, slowly closing the distance between them and staying unharmed all the while. Suddenly, he roared with all his might, and flames came pouring out of his mouth and showered over Cinder.

The huntress smirked, mildly impressed, and pushed herself off the ground, spinning and landing back on her feet. She jumped back hastily, keeping out of range of his attack, but soon hit her back against the pillar of the porch of a house.

Noticing her predicament, Taiyang put even more effort into his attack, his fiery breath becoming more intense and focused. But much to his surprise, just as it was about to connect, Cinder jumped and kicked against the pillar behind her, soaring above the flames and kicking him in the forehead, launching him rolling away.

Cinder landed and immediately turned around, raising an open palm and closing it around a fireball Yang had thrown at her. Yang stared at her in disbelief for a moment, then charged, swinging a flaming fist in her direction.

Cinder sidestepped the punch, leaned her head back to avoid another, then simply caught the next one. Yang grunted, trying to overpower her, but it was as good as pushing against a rock wall. The worst part was Cinder's condescending smirk, as if she were mocking her very effort to fight.

The flow of the battle shifted suddenly when Cinder let go, and Yang went stumbling forward helplessly as the force she was exerting met with thin air. Cinder grabbed her by the shoulder, turned her around, then kneed her in the stomach, drawing the air out of her lungs.

Almost gently, Cinder touched Yang's forehead and shoved her against a wall. Yang slid down and sat, breathless and humiliated. She had met her fair share of tough opponents in her life, and had lost to many of them, but she had never been defeated this cleanly.

"Now that that is over," Cinder said, pacing in front of her. "Have you reconsidered your stance? Will you come along _willingly_?"

Yang opened her mouth, but as hard as she tried, the only sounds that came out were gasps and wheezes.

At the other side of the street, Taiyang slowly rose to his feet. His forehead was split where it had been kicked, and a small quantity of blood was dripping to his left eye.

"No. She doesn't change her stance," he said. "You can go right back to the Fire Lord and tell her to forget it. Yang will see her when she wants to."

"Hmm. I see." Cinder looked him from head to toe. "Perhaps she needs a little incentive, then," She turned her back to him and walked a few steps away, shooting Yang a wink. "I did say he was fair game."

Suddenly, Cinder turned and pointed two fingers at Taiyang. Electric sparks arced through the length of her arm, then coalesced in the tip of her fingers, emitting a shrill noise.

"Wait!" Yang gasped. "Don't! I'll-"

Cinder let go, and the lightning bolt crossed the small length of the street, headed straight at Taiyang. To Yang's dismay, instead of dodging, he took a firm stance and raised a hand. The princess closed her eyes and hugged her legs, not wanting to see what happened next.

A couple seconds later, the shrill noise started again. "What?!" Cinder shouted - the first time Yang had heard any true outburst of emotion from her. "How?!"

Yang opened her eyes and saw her father holding the lightning in his own hand, a smug smile on his lips. "This, you nasty little huntress," he said. "Is why I'm the Royal Consort."

He thrust forward, and in the blink of an eye, the lightning bolt manifested and struck Cinder, sending her flying backward. She slammed against the wall of a house, then fell to the ground, where she lay spasming, sparks bouncing off her skin.

There was a moment of silence as Yang looked from her father to Cinder, struggling to understand what had happened.

"She'll be numb for a while, but she'll live," Taiyang shrugged. "Now how about we try and find Beaky and Daddy Beaky? They can't have gotten very far…"

He walked away, whistling loudly to attract the animals, while Yang just sat in stunned silence.

* * *

"Take it, Avatar. You're safe. I swear on the Burning Throne of the Fire Nation, you won't be harmed while you are on my ship."

Ruby glared at the Fire Lord, but reluctantly took her hand. As soon as she was on her feet, she took a few clumsy steps back to get some distance between them, then looked to where her staff had rolled to. A soldier was bending down to pick it up, and she had to fight very hard not to leap at him and attack.

"You," Raven pointed at the soldier. "Give the staff back to whom it belongs."

Nervously, the soldier tossed it to Ruby. She grabbed it in midair, then held it between herself and the Fire Lord. Raven looked at her curiously, then turned around and pointed to the housing cabins of the ship.

"Now that you have your weapon, you should feel safe to follow me," she said. "Or do you need anything else to ease your worries?"

"You could start by telling me what you want from me," Ruby said through gritted teeth.

"From you?" Raven paused. "A conversation, perhaps over a meal. Are you agreeable to that?"

Ruby gawked at her, caught completely off-guard. She expected torture, imprisonment, outright execution even, but a conversation? Was this really the Fire Lord she had heard so much about?

Remembering what her mother had taught her, Ruby stood more at ease and bowed her head a little. "A conversation," she repeated. "Fine. But don't try anything funny."

"You're my guest. I wouldn't dream of it," Raven said. She entered the cabins, leading Ruby through a maze of metal hallways that shook and rang with the motor of the ship, until they arrived at a set of double doors.

Raven pushed the doors open, and they stepped into a lavish room. A huge queen-sized bed with silk drapery stood in the corner, the walls were lined with paintings of Fire Nation culture, and at the very center, was a table filled with many delicious-looking foods, though Ruby didn't recognize half of them.

At that moment, it struck her that she was standing in the feared Fire Lord's bedroom. Just what the heck was she doing there?

"Sit," Raven said, gesturing to the table. "Are you a vegetarian? That was a common trait among the Air Nomads, if I recall correctly."

Ruby glared at the back of her head. What was the purpose of that question? Did the Fire Lord want to rile her up by mentioning the Air Nomads? And she did it so casually…

"Yeah," Ruby answered grudgingly as she sat down. "Why?"

"Simple curiosity," Raven said. "You _can_ eat. I promise none of it is poisoned."

Well, Ruby hadn't actually thought of that possibility, and the Fire Lord bringing it up herself did not make her comfortable. Hesitantly, she picked a single olive from the whole arrangement of foods and swallowed it in one go. She had to admit, it was rather tasty.

"I have to admit, I wasn't expecting this," Raven said, resting her elbows on the table and resting her head on the back of her hands. "The Avatar dropping out of the sky and onto my ship. I had received reports of your possible relocation to the Earth Kingdom, but during these tumultuous times, no information is certain…"

"I didn't drop out of the sky," Ruby corrected coldly. "You shot me with your evil fire and I fell."

"Evil fire, you say? That's an interesting way of looking at it," Raven said. She hung back to gaze at her palms in contemplation. "I suppose anything that powerful and that represents so much danger to other people would be considered evil." She made a dismissive gesture. "By your standards, of course."

"What is it?" Ruby blurted out. "How do you bend like that?"

Raven smirked. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

The Fire Lord got up and went to inspect a painting on the wall, as if she were seeing it for the first time. Ruby watched her carefully, keeping one hand close to her staff at all times.

"The invasion of the North Pole was foolish. I realize that now," Raven said. "Don't misunderstand me. It is not an impossible feat to defeat the Water Tribe. But with someone like Roman Torchwick coordinating the attack…" She clacked her tongue. "He was a man with a great lust for conquest, but he had little actual power. That's the difference between the glorious and the fallen, you see? Desire and willpower are nothing if you lack the strength to back them up."

Ruby stayed silent. She really didn't like what Raven was saying, but she didn't feel very safe voicing that aloud.

"The Earth Kingdom and its Queen have a lot of power. That's why an invasion of this proportion is needed. Anything else, and they'll push us aside and remain fighting – as the last fifteen years have proved," Raven said. "After them, you are my biggest threat. The power you hold equals no other in Remnant. To ravage entire continents, to run the oceans dry… That's why I wanted you captured so badly."

"So you don't think I'm guilty of neglecting my duties, like everyone says. That _is_ just an excuse to capture me," Ruby said, rage beginning to build inside her. "But it's not like you could actually believe that, right? The Fire Nation killed everyone in the Southern Air Temple."

"True. But allow me a slight correction." Raven turned to her and walked closer. " _I_ killed everyone in the Southern Air Temple." She paused. "Well, not everyone, seeing as you're here, sitting in front of me. Your mother was a devious little hider, she was…"

Ruby's blood ran cold as she stared at the Fire Lord. Raven stared right back, her face impassive. Frozen where she sat, Ruby didn't know what she was feeling. It was not anger, nor fear, but something else… Staring at something that should very well be a monster, but that in a fact was but a woman that spoke of genocide with little to no emotion.

" _W-why_?!" Ruby exclaimed, her whole body shaking. "What would drive anyone – _anyone_ \- to do something as horrible as that?"

"The answer is simple. The Air Nomads were my most powerful enemies, and their very nature would dictate that they fight my efforts with teeth and claw," Raven explained. "They had to go first."

"You… you…" Ruby stood up and slammed her hands on the table, sending plates and silverware flying everywhere. "Then why haven't you killed _me_ already?!"

Raven brushed a stray strawberry jam from her cheek, then looked at her, the intensity of her red eyes sending shivers down Ruby's back. "The Air Nomads had the power to oppose me. They were worthy foes. The same can be said about the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribe. But you…"

She leaned on the table, staring at Ruby from up close. "You haven't reached a tenth of your potential. A thousand lifetimes of experience available at your disposal, just waiting to be called upon…" She shook her head. "To kill you now would be shameful."

Ruby searched inside herself and called upon the Avatar State. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were glowing silver.

" _I have the power to stop you, Fire Lord_."

"You do?" Raven smiled. "Then strike me in the heart."

Ruby's glow faded, and she took a step back, grasping blindly for her staff. Horror overwhelmed her as she faced the Fire Lord, presenting herself with her arms thrown aside, defenseless.

"I don't doubt one tenth of your potential is enough to destroy me, Avatar," Raven said. "But _you_ are weak. That's where the problem lies."

Ruby grabbed her staff and ran past her, racing out of the room. She sprinted through the hallways of the ship, trying to remember the directions they had taken, while behind her, the Fire Lord followed.

"This won't happen again, Avatar! The next time we meet, don't count on my mercy!"

* * *

They were silent on the road to Atlas, the abandoned village disappearing in the horizon behind them. Midnight was coming, and in the far away in the sky, storm clouds were parting to reveal the full moon.

Yang turned her head to look over her shoulder. Cinder hadn't moved from the time she had been struck by lightning to when they had left the village, but that could have been an elaborate ruse, and she was still following them, plotting her revenge.

"Have you ever been hit by a lightning bolt?" Taiyang asked suddenly.

"What?" Yang looked at him in confusion. "No."

"Pray that it stays that way, because it hurts a lot. Depending on how powerful the lightning, you might not be able to stand for hours, not to mention walking or shooting an arrow," he said. "Stop worrying. She's gonna follow us, yes, and she's going to be _very_ angry, but we have a few days of peace ahead of us."

"If you say so," Yang frowned. "You lied to me, back when we were captured by General Ironwood. I asked if you redirected lightning and you said no."

"I have very good reasons to keep my technique a secret," Taiyang said. "Primarily, I knew that, as soon as you learned about it, you would begin pestering me to teach it to you."

Yang opened her mouth to deny that statement, then closed it and grumbled grudgingly. He had a point.

"I'm not teaching you, just to make things clear," Taiyang spoke firmly. "Throwing lightning at my daughter is at the very top of my list of things _not_ to do in my lifetime."

"I could do it," Yang muttered.

"Probably," Taiyang shrugged. "Go find a friendly storm to help you out if you wanna try. You're on your own, kiddo," he paused. "That's not the only reason, though. What would be the use of redirecting lightning if everyone knew I can do it? People wouldn't even try. So, I keep it a secret, and catch people off-guard."

"But mother knows, doesn't she?" Yang asked. "You told Cinder that's the reason you… uh…"

"It drew her attention when we were young," he said slowly, looking away. "Among some other things…"

Yang nodded. Her fingers closed tight around the reins of her ostrich-horse, knuckles turning white with the force she was exerting.

"I think…" She swallowed dry. "I think we should give up and let Cinder take us to mom."

Taiyang brought his mount to a halt, then grabbed Yang by the arm, forcing her to stop and face him.

"Are you saying that because that's what you want," he asked, "or because you're afraid of what could go wrong if we keep on this path?"

Yang pressed her lips together, not knowing what to say in response.

"Bad things always happen, sweetheart, no matter the choices we make," Taiyang said. "If you let your fears dictate your actions, you're just going to end up with a lot of regrets later down the line."

Yang looked down, her shoulders shaking slightly. "I don't wanna lose you, Dad."

"I'll always be there for you. You should worry more about losing yourself," he said, lifting her chin with a hand. "Eyes up, Dragonling. Best way to keep what you love is to be prepared for whatever life throws at you next. Got it?"

Yang took a deep breath, then nodded. "Got it."

"That's my girl," Taiyang smiled. "I might have to teach you my secret technique after all."

* * *

Weiss kneeled on the beach, eyeing the settling ocean in a helpless rage. The rain, which was just now ending, had left her hair plastered to her forehead and back, and she was cold and exhausted. There wasn't a drop of energy left in her body.

"I should have stopped her," she muttered. "It's my fault."

Jaune crouched beside her, a weary expression on his face. "Come on, Weiss," he said. "Don't speak like that. Ruby will be back."

Weiss turned to look at him, her face coloring with rage. "No, she won't! It's been too long, she should have been back by now!" she shouted. "Don't – don't lie to me! I know you're thinking it too!"

Jaune grimaced, not saying anything in response. Weiss lowered her head, holding back her tears.

"What am I gonna do now?" she whispered. "I was supposed to keep her safe."

"I know, Weiss," Jaune hugged her. "I… I was supposed to keep her safe too."

"Jaune…" Weiss leaned her head on his chest and shut her eyes.

Jaune clenched his fists and counted to ten in his head. He wanted nothing more than to follow Weiss' example and shut down for as long as was needed, but he knew that if he did that, it was over. He needed to be strong, for himself and her, if only for a little while.

"Weiss. Listen," he said, doing his best to control his shaky voice. "We're gonna get up, then we're gonna find somewhere where we can warm up and-"

" _Guys!_ "

Jaune looked up, startled, and spotted something dropping fast towards them. He stood and reached for his sword instinctively, then felt his heart skip a beat when he recognized a familiar red cloak.

Ruby landed right beside them, dropping her staff immediately, and jumped on him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I found you!" she yelled. "I thought I had lost you!"

"Ruby! We thought-" He stopped, a holding back a sob. "We thought we had lost _you_. Like you had-"

" _Ruby_!" Weiss shrieked, jumping to her feet and enveloping both of them in a hug.

The three stayed like that for a while. Eventually, Weiss stepped back and ripped Ruby away from Jaune and pointed a finger at her nose, like a mother scolding her child.

"I keep telling you not to be reckless, but you never listen," she said coldly. "Well look where it got us. When are you gonna learn?"

"I'm sorry," Ruby pouted. "I got carried away. With the Avatar State, I thought I could end the invasion early and save everyone…"

"Hmph. Well, I can't change that about you." Weiss' eyes narrowed dangerously. "But the next time you try to pull something like this again, I'll freeze you into an iceberg."

"That wasn't that big of a problem last time," Jaune pointed out quietly.

"Don't interrupt." Weiss glared daggers at him, immediately shutting him up. She turned back to Ruby. "Understood?"

Ruby nodded mutely a few times, honestly a little scared.

"Anyway," Weiss said, returning to a softer tone of voice. "Did Captain Port and the rest of the crew make it out successfully?"

"Yep. It was actually pretty easy to get them out," Ruby replied.

"Then why did it take you so long to get back?" Jaune asked.

"I… got caught by the Fire Lord." Ruby looked away. "We had a chat."

" _What_?!" Weiss exclaimed. "The Fire Lord? She's heading this invasion herself? Oh, no. Somehow, things have gotten even worse."

"Wait, did you say you had a chat?" Jaune blinked. "What could you possibly chat about with the Fire Lord?"

"…Lots of things." Ruby crossed her arms. "I'm tired. Can we talk about this in the morning?"

Weiss composed herself and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Sure." She looked at Jaune. "What were you saying before, about a shelter…?"

"…Oh, right," Jaune said, looking around. "Uhm, there should be someplace close…"

"Perhaps further inland?"

As Jaune and Weiss talked about finding shelter, Ruby turned to look at the ocean, and faraway, the lights of the Fire Nation navy.

_You are weak._

"I'm stronger than you," she whispered. "I am."


	23. The Three Kings' Path

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Three: The Three Kings' Path**

* * *

Ruby peered at the horizon from the top of a tree, shielding her eyes from the harsh sunlight with a hand. She stared for a few seconds, then gulped and sat down on the branch she had been standing on.

Things were not looking good. After a series of bad decisions, Ruby and her friends found themselves on a much trickier path to Atlas than they had planned. If they continued toward the direction they were going, they would soon be stopped by a series of mountain they couldn't climb.

Circumventing the mountain to the north could take days. Going south would be faster, but there was also a big problem there: the Fire Lord's conquering army, on a march to the west. Not fun at all.

Ruby sighed, realizing there was no miraculous solution to be found. All that was left to do was to go back down and choose a lesser evil with the others.

She jumped from the branch and floated down gently, landing on the ground gracefully. Weiss and Jaune looked at her anxiously, expecting an answer, but Ruby could only shrug in response.

"Unfortunate. But we were probably hoping too much, anyway," Weiss said. "So, do we go north, or south? I vote south. We've fought firebenders before. I'd rather risk a battle than lose who know how many days avoiding one."

"I'm with Weiss," Ruby said, and grinned sheepishly. "I mean, I agree with her."

Weiss shot her a dubious look, which Ruby pretended to not notice. Shaking her head, the princess turned to Jaune, who was turning their Earth Kingdom map around and around and around, as if it was some otherworldly puzzle.

"You're already outvoted, but I'll allow you to voice your own opinion on the matter. It's the courteous thing to do," Weiss said haughtily. Ruby couldn't tell if she was joking or not.

"Uh, actually…" Jaune tilted his head sideways a little. "There might actually be a third way…"

"Look. I know what I just said about allowing your opinion…" Weiss interjected, glaring at him. "But I would really prefer you don't."

"I'm being serious." Jaune looked up at her. "There's a path through the mountains. I think there might be tunnels there, or something like that."

Weiss hmphed, then leaned over the map, deciding to humor him. "Okay. Show me your miraculous third path which appeared out of – _wait a minute_. Since when has that been there?" she asked, pointing at the mountain path depicted in the map.

Jaune frowned. "Since always?"

"Why didn't you point it out before?!" Weiss screamed, making both Jaune and Ruby take a step away for safety. "This could save us weeks of travelling! _Weeks_! Look, the exit is so close to Atlas!"

"Uh, I don't know," Jaune shrugged. "I guess I just forgot to point it out?"

Weiss just stared at him, one eye twitching. Jaune laughed nervously, taking another step away.

Finally, Weiss ripped the map from his grasp, then thrust it towards Ruby. "You're handling navigations from now on."

"Me? I'm map girl now?" Ruby asked, a cheerful smile appearing on her face. "Yay!"

Weiss leaned in close, staring her dead in the eyes. "Do _not_ take this responsibility lightly."

"Worry not, Weiss!" Ruby declared, lifting her chin proudly. "After all, Responsibility is my middle name!"

"Ruby, you don't even have a last name," Weiss pointed out without a shred of amusement in her.

Ruby opened her mouth to argue, but Weiss gave her no chance to go any further, walking away without saying another word.

* * *

The trio made it to the entrance of the tunnels as the sun started to set. They sat down briefly to eat from their meager provisions – some bread and water – then got up again, eager to get on their way.

As they stood at the very edge of the entrance and Jaune and Ruby tried very hard to light a torch – it was a trickier thing to do than one might imagine - Weiss looked to the side and spotted a sign on the wall. Curious, she walked there and read it, her nonchalant attitude dropping more with each word.

"Jaune. Ruby," she called. "Would you mind coming here for a moment?"

The bumbling pair halted their activities and joined her. Ruby leaned forward and strained her eyes to read.

_Beware, travelers,_

_Beware the Tree Kings' Path,_

_For only the strongest men and women_

_Shall find its end._

Below that message, there was a drawing of three humanoid figures, standing side by side, then another message below that.

_The heart will show you its greatest desires;_

_The mind will show you its worst fears;_

_The soul will show you the road ahead._

Ruby blinked. "Uh… what? Is that a riddle or something?"

Weiss crossed her arms. "I think it's pretty obvious it's a warning, though it also might be a very bad joke left by some very unfunny people," she said. "Our desires and fears? Please. Are we really to believe these tunnels will magically show them to us?"

"As the Avatar, I have to say that doesn't sound all that weird. I've been forced to confront visions of my worst fears before," Ruby noted humbly. "What about that part about the road…?"

"I think that means we'll be shown our future, maybe?" Jaune spoke up nervously.

Weiss turned to face him, her eyes straightening in suspicion. "You knew about this all along, didn't you? That's why you didn't mention the path before."

Jaune raised his hands sheepishly. "It was written on the map. Sorry."

Weiss just shook her head, then looked at the sign again and sighed.

"It's not like we can go back now, Weiss," Ruby said quietly. "And I bet if we stay together, everything will be fine!"

"I suppose you have a point," Weiss nodded hesitantly. "Perhaps we should tie ourselves together or something like that…"

"What! No way. You worry too much, Weiss," Ruby waved dismissively, as if slapping away Weiss' suggestion. "I mean, what's the _worst_ that could happen inside there?"

The trio shared a long moment of silence, during which Jaune came to wish he had never opened his mouth about the tunnels, and Weiss moved her hands to massage her temples and sighed in exasperation.

"…Sometimes, Ruby, I truly do detest you."

* * *

If there was one thing to be said about the Three Kings' Path, it was that it was very dark. That shouldn't have come as a surprise, considering it was a tunnel running straight through a series of mountains, but Ruby had a feeling the darkness was actually fighting against the light of their torch, making it very difficult for her to see her friends at either side of her.

Weiss had expressed some worry about getting lost as they began their trek through the Path, but Ruby hadn't been afraid at all, and she had yet to change her opinion. There was something about the Path, some strange quality in the air and the walls around them, that instilled in her a belief that they were going in the right direction, always.

Were they being guided? Was that part of the Path's magic? They had yet to experience anything unusual, but that didn't mean the place wasn't magic.

After what felt like hours, their lone torch, being held high by Ruby, began to fade. She brought it closer to her and began to blow on it, hoping to spark it back to life, maybe even unconsciously use some of her firebending potential… but it was no use. In a few seconds, the flames went out completely.

Ruby stayed very still, turning her head slowly to look for her friends. She couldn't even make out their figures in the darkness. Carefully, she leaned to the right, where Jaune had been, but her hand met only with a rock wall.

"Monkey feathers," she complained quietly, then raised her voice. "Jaune? Weiss? Guys?"

Her voice echoed hauntingly through the tunnel. Ruby shuddered, now deeply regretting dismissing Weiss' idea of tying themselves together. Awkward as it had sounded, that would have been really handy now.

She couldn't stay where she was, though. Every second not spent moving brought her closer to desperation. She needed to trust that Weiss and Jaune would go the same way as her, and that eventually, they would meet again.

Before she could take a step forward, a flame appeared a few meters ahead of her. Ruby shut her eyes for a moment, getting them accustomed to the sudden brightness, then opened them again.

A young woman with raven hair and amber eyes stood before her, holding a small flame above her left hand. The flames illuminated only one side of her face, while the other was still in the shadows.

"Finally, I found you," the stranger said, sounding relieved. She held out her free hand. "Come, Avatar. It's not safe here."

"What?" Ruby took a step back. "Who are you?"

"An ally. Just trust me. You _need_ to trust me."

Ruby frowned. Well, that was one way of convincing someone to go with their wishes. Not a particularly good way, but a way nonetheless.

"Okay," she said, taking the woman's hand hesitantly. "Where are we going?"

Not answering, the stranger gripped Ruby's hand almost to the point of hurting her, then lead her away with quick steps.

* * *

"Pay attention, you idiot."

Jaune raised his head at the sound of Weiss' voice. He twisted his nose, the smell of ash making him sick to the stomach. Gray hills spread in front of him as far as his eyes could see.

"Jaune!" Weiss yelled in his ear. "This is our only chance! Snap out of it!"

Jaune shook his head. Suddenly he could see an army of firebenders approaching them from the hills, marching fast, unnaturally so, and bringing the heat of a sun with them.

"Where… where's Ruby?" he asked, drawing his sword.

Weiss stared at him with a shocked expression, then clenched her fists and turned away. "Why would you say something like that after what happened?"

"What do you mean?" Jaune frowned. "What happened?"

"You! _You_ happened!" Weiss shouted, then took a deep breath, composing herself. "Forget it. We'll deal with this later," she said coldly. "For now, try not to get me killed too."

As the princess formed a water whip and started to walk towards the approaching army, Jaune found himself frozen where he stood, her words ringing endlessly in his ears.

* * *

Weiss watched the surface of the ocean carefully, her eyes searching for any sign of movement from below. Her feet were planted firmly on her little island of ice she had made.

One. Two. One. Two. One… _there_!

Winter jumped out of the water, propelling herself with a high-pressured jet, but before she could get halfway to her sister, Weiss waved a hand and knocked her off-course with a massive wave.

Weiss grinned and dived into the water, jetting towards Winter and wrapping her arms around her waist. Winter beat against her shoulders in protest, but Weiss could see bubbles escaping her lips as she struggled not to laugh.

Suddenly, the two of them went flying upwards, ripped out of the ocean in a large bubble. They floated there for a moment, then the bubble went rocketing back towards the North Pole's waterfront, where it popped, releasing them onto the hard ice.

"Aren't you two a little old to be play-fighting in the water?"

Weiss turned around and smiled. "Winter absolutely is," she said. "But I still have a little time left."

"Excuse me? I'm not _that_ old," Winter muttered bitterly.

"Oh, relax, you two." Their mother stopped before them, running a hand through Weiss' hair. "It was a joke. You'll always be babies in my eyes."

"I'm not that _young_ either," Winter added.

Willow smiled at her, then gestured back at the city. "Your father called for your help, Winter. Something related to the Academy, I'm sure."

Winter nodded, then walked away. Weiss watched her go, then turned to her mother.

"I'm also a Grandmaster. Why didn't father call for my help too?" she asked.

"Because, my little snowflake," Willow poked her in the nose. "The truth is, he doesn't need any help. That was an excuse to get your sister away for a bit."

"What? Why would you-"

Weiss stopped speaking to let out a shrill scream as a tendril of water wrapped around her and lifted her above the ocean, then dumped her in it. When she rose back to the surface, she was immediately greeted with her mother's devious face right in front of her.

"What about me?" Willow asked. "Am I too old to be playing with my favorite daughter?"

Weiss gawked at her for a moment, then smiled and dove, taking a hold of Willow's ankle and dragging her down with her.

If her mother was allowed to play dirty, so was she!

* * *

"You know, I would really appreciate it if you told me your name," Ruby said, trying her hardest not to trip as the stranger pulled her by the hand at a breakneck pace. "Actually, scratch that. Just say something. _Anything_."

Ruby waited for an answer, but got none. She groaned, then yelped as she tripped on something and almost fell. The strange looked over her shoulder, her amber eyes seeming to burn into her soul.

"Walk faster," she said. "You're the Avatar. Don't make an excuse."

"Lady, you don't know me, okay?" Ruby responded in frustration. "We just met in this stupid cave. Don't tell me what to – hey!"

The stranger started to walk again, not giving any prior warning. Ruby glared at the back of her neck, wondering if she was even hearing her.

As they hurried through the tunnel, Ruby released her frustration at her current situation in a silent breath, then began to think about _why_ this was happening.

Was this woman her greatest desire? Nope. She was pretty, yes, but Ruby didn't care much about that. Her worst fear? Maybe. She certainly was being annoying now. But that didn't feel right either.

So, the only option left was…

Ruby yelped as she once again tripped. Just as she was about to hit the ground, a hand wrapped around her arm and brought her back up.

Ruby looked up, expecting to see her frustrating guide, but to her surprise, a girl just a little older than her now stood where the firebender had just been, holding a torch in her right hand while gently letting go of Ruby's arm with the other.

"Are you okay?" the girl asked.

"Uh, yeah," Ruby said softly. "Thanks. Who are you?"

The girl smiled a bit, looking to the side. Ruby looked her up and down, thinking she looked a little _too_ ready for combat, with her greaves, bracers and armored top. The rest of her attire was green, like her eyes – maybe she was from the Earth Kingdom?

"Sorry. I can't tell you, not exactly," she said. "I am… hmm…"

"Someone from my future?" Ruby guessed.

"Your future… That's close enough," the stranger shrugged apologetically. "Yes, let's leave it at that. I'm your future."

"Okay. Well, I already like you a lot better than my last guide," Ruby said. "Can you get me out of here?"

The girl nodded, then turned around and offered a hand. Ruby went to take it, but stopped when she noticed the shield on her back. Hesitantly, Ruby reached forward to run a hand over it, feeling how sturdy it was.

"Doesn't it weigh you down?" she asked quietly.

The girl shifted her weight between her feet, opening and closing her mouth. "Maybe you'll find out someday," she said eventually. "Come on, Ruby. We don't have much time left."

Ruby took her hand, and together they began to walk further into the Path.

* * *

Jaune skidded to a halt, lifting his sword in front of his face to deflect an arrow. He breathed out shakily, acutely aware of how close he had come to dying. How had he seen that coming? And how had he reacted so precisely?

He looked over at Weiss, who hadn't stopped running. She had her plate full between dodging the numerous projectiles being thrown their way and retributing the offense with her waterbending moves.

It was impressive, Jaune thought. If things continued this way, he could actually see them coming out of this alive, if not victorious.

Yelling bravely, he charged forward, batting a batch of arrows away with a swing of his sword. If he could just make it to the soldiers, then he could start doing some heavy damage!

Just as he and Weiss were about to clash with the army, the soldiers stopped abruptly and began to step to the sides, clearing a path between them. A flame approached them slowly, like a star walking on the face of Remnant, until it surpassed the soldiers and came to a halt in front of them.

"Fire Lord…" Weiss muttered, then raised her arms, gathering all the water at her disposal in a floating circle around her. "It's time for you to pay!"

She bended the water forward in a huge barrage, but it turned to vapor before they could even get close to her target. The fire doubled in size, roaring like a hurricane, then spun and converged unto itself, revealing a dark figure in its midst… and then grew again, exploding outward ruthlessly.

Jaune screamed and jumped to the ground, pressing his body against the dirt in a desperate attempt at saving himself. The roar of the fire was deafening, but somehow, he could hear something else above it - a scream that made his blood run cold.

After what felt like an eternity, the inferno came to an end. Jaune kneeled, his face becoming a mask of horror as he saw that everything around him was reduced to black.

The grass. The trees. The soldiers. And…

"How unexpected."

He looked up to see the Fire Lord towering over him, a mass of darkness that only vaguely took the form of a human. Two eyes shone down at him, red as blood.

"Out of everyone… You're the one who survived to the end."

* * *

"Do I really need to be here, father?" Weiss asked, passing a hand through her hair one last time to ascertain that it was dry after her playtime at the waterfront.

Jacques turned in his throne to look at her, his eyes displaying kindness as he saw how uncomfortable she was. "I'm afraid you do. The whole family needs to attend this," he said. "After all, it's not every year we receive ambassadors from the Air Nomads."

"It'll be good for you, dear," her mother said, poking her playfully from the side. "Maybe you'll make a friend."

"I have plenty of friends already," Weiss noted.

"What mother meant to say was maybe you'll make a friend who knows how to swim," Winter said, smirking.

"You just won't leave Neptune alone, will you?"

Their little family conversation was brought to an abrupt end as the doors of the palace opened, and the Air Nomads' procession entered. It was a meager group, befitting of their nation. Weiss counted six of them, and not one of them were full-fledged adults.

"Welcome, friends!" Jacques greeted warmly, standing up and spreading his hands. "Come! Let us start this day with a feast befitting of our friendship."

He started to guide them into the dining wing of the palace. Weiss made to follow, but stopped when she spotted a lone nomad had stayed behind, looking at every corner of the room curiously.

Weiss sighed. This was just her luck. "Excuse me," she said, walking up to the girl. "Do you need help?"

The nomad looked at her in surprise, then smiled. "No, no! Sorry. It's just… I'm not hungry at all." She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "I… kind of ate a whole bag of cookies on the way here."

"You weren't aware there was going to be a welcoming feast?" Weiss frowned.

"No, I did know that. It's just… my mom's cookies are delicious…" the girl sighed. "My name's Ruby, by the way."

"Weiss Schnee."

They stayed in silence for a while, Weiss expecting Ruby to continue the conversation, but instead she only stared at her with a goofy smile on her face.

Weiss cleared her throat. "Well, since you don't want to eat anything…" she said. "Perhaps I could show you around the city?"

"Yes!" Ruby exclaimed, jumping in excitement. "Please do! Or, ooh, we could _fly_ around the city!"

Before Weiss could ask what she meant, Ruby wrapped an arm around her waist, lifting her up in an impressive display of strength, then sprinted out of the palace. Once they were outside, she jumped and thrust her free hand downwards, propelling them up with a miniature tornado.

"I – I never agreed to this!" Weiss yelled, looking down nervously.

"Oh, come on. It will be fun!" Ruby said. "Tell me, where do we go first?"

Weiss looked at her face, so full of energy and glee. She couldn't stay mad at that.

Perhaps this wouldn't be so bad, after all.

* * *

The Path seemed to stretch on endlessly, never changing in appearance. Ruby wondered how they were going through the mountains without taking any turns. She supposed that was part of the magic of the place.

Her companion did not speak a word to her, but Ruby caught her glancing at her several times. She looked troubled, as if she wanted to help Ruby, but for some reason wasn't able to.

What was the point of the Path showing her this girl, if it wasn't going to allow her to learn who she was and why she was important to her future? The same applied to her previous guide. The Path, more than anything else, was proving to be quite frustrating.

Eventually, the stranger in green stopped and let go of Ruby's hand. "I'm sorry, but this is where we part ways," she said. "Don't be afraid."

"Why would I be afraid?" Ruby asked.

"Just…" the girl took a step back, looking away. "Stay strong, Ruby."

Suddenly, her torch went out, leaving Ruby blind in the pitch-black tunnel. Ruby gulped, then went to take a step forward, only to immediately fall to her knees, holding her head in her hands.

The voices.

They were everywhere.

Nowhere.

Inside her.

Flashes of white came from all around her, brief scenes of a time unknown to her, happening too fast for her to process.

Numb, the rest of Ruby's body slipped to the ground, and she lied there, lost in time.

* * *

The Fire Lord turned around, joining her hands behind her back. Her dark aura receded slowly, forming a thin outline around her body, but still Jaune could see nothing but a vague figure. He didn't know if that was more or less scary than if he could actually make out her features.

"This is rather anticlimactic," the Fire Lord said. "I've conquered the whole world. The North Pole and the South, the Earth Kingdom, even the abandoned Air Temples. All my enemies, reduced to ash by my own hands," she turned around, her red eyes falling on him. "But you, a… _nobody_ … still stands in my way."

Jaune lowered his head. Her stare was too intense for him to match, and he took comfort in the fact that, if she attacked, he at least wouldn't see it coming beforehand.

"But I suppose I am being a bit generous," the Fire Lord said. "You are no obstacle. You're not even a nuisance! Executing you might just be a waste of energy…"

Jaune heard the sound of a sword being drawn, then felt the cold tip of a blade touch his forehead.

"In fact, I am beginning to think leaving you alive would be a far better punishment for your defiance," the Fire Lord paused. The blade left his forehead. "But it is your choice. Tell me… Do you wish for the relief of death? Or to carry on, hopeless, defeated… alone…"

* * *

"Ooh, do that again, Weiss! Pretty please!" Ruby exclaimed, hopping around her restlessly.

Weiss followed her with her eyes for a while, amused by Ruby's antics, then lifted her arms. A large quantity of water rose from the pool of the Waterbending Academy, spinning and converging on itself until it formed a perfect sphere. Then, the princess closed her hands, and the water froze fast.

"Here it comes…" Ruby muttered in anticipation. Weiss joined her hands, concentrating briefly, then parted them brusquely. The sphere shattered into thousands of shards, which quickly turned to snow and fell all around them, floating gently in the air.

Ruby looked up, amazed by the display. Weiss smiled, glad to impress her once again – even if impressing Ruby was about as hard as breathing.

Weiss stepped forward and flicked her hand, getting a stray snowflake out of Ruby's nose. There were a lot more in her hair – cleaning it would be a nightmare. A waste, even. Ruby did look rather cute that way…

"That was so cool, Weiss," Ruby said. "I wish I could do it too."

"Huh?" Weiss blinked, snapping out of her thoughts. "Do what?"

"Waterbending, silly."

"I could teach you, if you want," Weiss replied immediately.

Ruby looked at her weirdly, then smiled and shrugged. "Good one, Weiss," she said. "Me, waterbending."

Weiss just stared at her. Ruby was… an airbender. Why ever would she offer to teach her waterbending? The words had just come out of her mouth, unbidden, and they hadn't been meant as a joke.

"So, uh…" Ruby said, dragging her foot on the snow coyly. "I need to go now. We're leaving to visit the Earth Kingdom tomorrow, so I need to pack my things."

"You don't have a lot of things to pack," Weiss said absently-minded.

"Maybe. But I don't want my friends to get mad at me for being a lazybones again," Ruby shrugged. "So… Spending this week with you was pretty nice. Thanks for showing me around and stuff, Weiss."

"It was my pleasure," Weiss said, smiling. "Perhaps you can visit again soon?"

"Sure!" Ruby exclaimed cheerfully. "Gotta go! Bye!"

She turned around and walked away briskly. Just as she was about to exit the Academy grounds, she spun and sprinted back to Weiss, kissed her in the cheek, then left again, somehow running even faster than before.

Weiss stood there for a moment, stunned, then raised her hand to touch her warm cheek. Well, she hadn't seen _that_ coming. But… she wasn't going to complain.

* * *

_Feet on the ground. Spread your legs. Shoulders high, arms low… Perfect! Now you look like an earthbender._

_I only wanted to bring out the true potential inside of you._

_Lay a finger on my sister, and you're done for!_

_It's my fault. My responsibility. I'm sorry, but I have to get them back. I have to._

_She is the reason why, Avatar._

_**WELCOME BACK** _

* * *

Ruby gasped, opening her eyes to a bright light ahead of her. Weakly, she rose to her feet, utterly confused about what she had just experienced, but at the same time, relieved it was finally over.

She brought her hand in front of her eyes to shield them from the light. Was than an exit? Could it be? But there was no way she could have walked that far in so little time…

She heard someone muttering to her right and jumped in fright, almost hitting her head on the ceiling of the tunnel. Once she was back on her feet, she looked to the origin of the sound… and saw Jaune, standing still with his arms wrapped around his body and eyes shut tight, as if he were cowering from something.

"Jaune!" she yelled, walking up to him. "Jaune, we made it! Get up!"

Ruby shook him by the shoulders, but he refused to show any reaction. Ruby exhaled in frustration and spun around, trying to figure out what to do. Much to her surprise, she saw Weiss standing there too, though she looked far more at peace than Jaune did, with a warm smile gracing her lips.

"The heart… and the mind," Ruby muttered, connecting the dots immediately. " _Only the strongest shall make it to the end_."

She ran to Weiss and tried to shove her forward, but the princess did not budge. Grunting, Ruby circled around and started to snap her fingers in front of her face.

"Weiss! Wake up! Whatever you're dreaming about, it's not true!" she yelled. "You're stronger than this!" She went back to Jaune and started to shake him again. "Come on, Jaune! You're strong too! You rescued me, remember? Twice!"

Frustrated, she stepped back and looked at the two of them, clenching her fists at her sides.

"Wake up. Please," she held back a sob, then screamed at the top of her lungs. " _I need you_!"

* * *

He was alone. Ruby was gone. Weiss was gone. He had survived, become stronger than he had ever imagined was possible… but what did it matter now? He had no one to fight for anymore. No more friends to rescue. No world to save.

"I…" he said, raising his head slowly to lock eyes with the Fire Lord. "Please…"

 _Kill me_?

He stopped. His muscles clenched, and a spark of determination lit inside of him. His friends hadn't died for this. They were gone, but that didn't give him permission to stop fighting. He might be outmatched, overwhelmed, completely out of his depth…

…but when had things ever been different?

"I want to live."

The Fire Lord gazed at him, and for a moment, Jaune could swear he saw surprise mark her shadowed face. She stepped back and sheathed her sword, then gestured to the side.

"Then walk away, and make sure we never cross paths again," she said. "Because if that ever happens, I will not offer you this choice again."

"No. Didn't you hear what I just said?" Jaune rose to his feet and unsheathed his sword, holding between himself and the Fire Lord. "I want to live. That's what I'm going to do."

The dark flames withered and faded. The Fire Lord smiled. "Then give me your best shot, boy."

* * *

Weiss gazed down at her reflection on the ocean's surface. She brought her hand to her face, her fingers trailing her delicate complexion, running over her mouth, her nose, her eyes…

Something was missing. She knew it. But what was it? _What was it_?

"Snowflake?" Her mother appeared behind her, wrapping her arms around her and resting her chin on her shoulder. "You should go to sleep. We're to bid farewell to the Air Nomads early in the morning."

"Are we?" Weiss asked quietly. "That… doesn't feel right."

"Ah. I know what you mean," Willow smiled knowingly. "Perhaps you don't have to say goodbye. The Water Tribe _could_ use an ambassador at the Southern Air Temple…"

"They are not going back immediately, mother," Weiss said. "First, they're to visit the Earth Kingdom, then the Western Temple. Only after that will they return home."

"And? Does travelling the world with that friend of yours really sound that bad?"

Weiss did not respond. She gently pushed her mother's arms away, then walked ahead a little.

"Goodbye."

Willow stared at her, first in confusion, then in sad understanding. Weiss bit her lip to stop herself from crying.

"I'm sorry," she said. "This isn't how things are supposed to be."

She walked into the water, every step making her sink deeper, until only her head was visible. She stopped briefly to look back at her mother, then smiled and dove fully, leaving her home behind.

* * *

Ruby stumbled into the light, dragging her incoherent friends with her. Jaune was looking around agitatedly, as if he were expecting them to be jumped by some hidden enemies, while Weiss had her head lowered in an obvious display of sorrow.

The redhead grunted, giving one last pull, and the trio fell down on a soft patch of grass. Ruby sat up, sighing in relief, and looked at the tunnel's exit. At last, they were out!

Unless this was another of the Path's weird tricks.

…Eh, what was the point of worrying? They'd find out eventually if that was the case.

"Oh," Jaune finally spoke, looking at Ruby and Weiss, then back at the tunnel. "We're out? We're out!" He jumped and raised his arms triumphantly. "Everyone's alive again!"

"Jeez. I was going to ask you what you saw back there, but I think that's enough for me to figure out on my own," Ruby said.

"Trust me, that is probably for the best," Jaune agreed. "What about you? Were you shown your fears too or something?"

"Nope. I saw the future," Ruby paused, scratching her head. "I think. Maybe. It was all very confusing."

"So that leaves Weiss with her greatest desires," Jaune said. "Right, Weiss?"

Weiss looked up at them, then stood and beat the dirt out of her dress. "I don't remember," she said simply.

"Uh… You sure about that?" Jaune asked. "My memories are kinda foggy, but I still remember most of what I saw."

"Well, good for you!" Weiss scoffed. "By the way, _Jaune_ , you shouldn't jump to conclusions! Just because you saw your greatest fears _and_ Ruby saw her future, doesn't mean _I_ saw my _greatest desires_. And what if I did see them? Does a bunch of rocks know myself better than I do now? No! Only I know what my greatest desires are! End of discussion!"

She finished her rant by taking a deep breath, then crossing her arms and turning away. Ruby and Jaune looked at each other, both awed and scared by her long-winded answer.

"So…" Ruby said awkwardly, trying to break the ice. "You really don't want to tell us? Because whatever you saw sure sounds juicy!"

Weiss glared at her for a few seconds, then blushed and cleared her throat. "It was not juicy. In fact, I think you would find it rather boring." She put her hands on her hips. "Now, are we going to stand here forever, or are we going to find somewhere to sleep?"

She did not bother to wait for their answer, instead walking right past them.

"Dude. Ruby. Dude," Jaune whispered. "We totally have to find out what she saw."

"She'll share when she feels comfortable," Ruby said patiently. "Until then, let's let her keep her privacy."

"Okay. You're right," Jaune nodded. "But, seriously. What did she see?"

Ruby thought about the question for a moment, then shrugged. "Eh. It probably was boring."


	24. The Huntress

Water. Earth. Fire. Air.

Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world.

Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished.

Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked.

Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone.

But I believe that Ruby can save the world.

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Four: The Huntress**

* * *

_Thump_. So soft, so distant, but it happened. The sound of the arrowhead penetrating the dark oak tree at the top of the hill. Cinder lowered her bow and nodded to herself, then started to climb up.

The trunk of the tree was littered with the entire content of her quiver. She hadn't a proper target to practice with, so she had resorted to using her imagination. If her imaginary foe weren't so imaginary, they would be squirming in pain on the ground with arrows lodged in all the painful places – and not the lethal ones, of course.

She clucked her tongue, then started to take the arrows out one by one and deposit them back in her quiver. This type of practice was a waste of time for someone like her. Her problem hadn't been a lack of skill, but overconfidence.

She had underestimated her prey – one of them, at least. The princess was not a challenge. Her father, on the other hand, was a formidable force, with a technique she had never seen before. During his prime, he had been the Fire Nation's most powerful warrior. Dismissing that had been her downfall.

She would not make that mistake again. The next time they fought, she would fall upon him like a thunderstorm. But even that… No, that wouldn't be enough.

Cinder turned to look at the distant city of Atlas. Somewhere within those walls, her preys were hiding, waiting for her inevitable return. And they were ready to fight. She couldn't afford to think otherwise.

She could take the girl easily, but the consort would fight with tooth and nail to save her. That wouldn't be such a problem, if it weren't for the fact that Atlas was an Earth Kingdom city. As busy as their army was with holding off and preparing for the Fire Nation invasion, she still did not want to risk fighting the soldiers left in the city and losing her objective because of it.

She needed help. Luckily, she knew just whom to ask.

* * *

"Halt," the soldiers crossed their lances in front of her, blocking her path into the city. "State your business."

Cinder looked up at them, her amber eyes going over their forms meticulously. One of them was taller and had more muscle, but he was holding his lance much too stiffly, and his face was twisted forcefully. Younger, inexperienced.

The other one, his senior, was less stout, and he had the weary expression of someone who had known conflict for far too long. Not an uncommon sight in her recent travels.

Neither would require a lot of effort from her part.

"I'm visiting a friend," she said, throwing the younger one a charming smile. "He's a soldier in the army. He told me by letter that he was stationed in the city."

"Did he now, miss?" the senior asked. He sounded patient, but Cinder did not miss the subtle twitching of his face that indicated he was suspicious of her motivation. Yes, he had been a soldier for a long time. "And what is your friend's name?"

"Lee. I know! - how terribly common. But he's awfully proud of his name anyways," she giggled. "Surely you must know him. Lee is one of the strongest soldiers in the army! He told me the Earth Queen herself offered him a position in her personal guard."

The senior smiled knowingly, then looked at his companion. "Wow, I wish I knew this Lee. That name ring any bells to you, rookie?"

"Uh. Lee? I don't know, sir. There are so many Lees around here…" the younger one swallowed dry and turned to face her. "I-I'm sorry, miss. I'm afraid we can't let you in, not during these times…"

Cinder pressed her lips together and lowered a hand to her belly, leaning forward a bit. "But… I _need_ to see him." She bowed her head bashfully. "You don't understand. He's not just a friend… We are, ah, how to say it…" She looked up, tears brimming in her eyelids. "He's going to war soon. He needs to know that I'm…"

The rookie looked at her belly, his jaw dropping slowly, then turned to his senior with a helpless expression on his face. The older man inspected her a moment more, then sighed and stepped aside.

"Go on, miss," he said tiredly. "Sorry for the trouble. You know how it is."

"I-I understand," Cinder righted her posture, wiping the tears from her eyes, then strode past them. "Thank you, sirs."

"The b-barracks aren't far! You can't miss them!" The rookie called after her. "I hope everything goes okay for you two, miss!"

With her back turned to them, Cinder allowed herself a smile. People were so easy to manipulate, men especially. She could lay this city to ruins if those were her orders, and they had let her walk right in because of a run-of-the-mill sob story.

"Tsk." She took her bag off her shoulder and opened it slightly, running a finger through the length of her bow. They could have at least searched her belongings. "And it's taken fifteen years for the Fire Lord to muster the courage to fully invade your kingdom…"

She took her bow and quiver, strapped them to her back, then zipped up her bag. She couldn't amuse herself with the Earth Kingdom's shortcomings all day.

It was time to get to work.

* * *

"And this one is a ruby, mined from the purest veins in the isles off the shore of Vacuo. Beautiful, but terribly pricy, of course. Would you like to know the price anyways, miss?"

Emerald tore her eyes away from the shiny ring and smiled at the vendor, drumming her fingers against the edge of his counter. "Oh, I think that would make me very miserable, so please don't, sir," she laughed. "How about the simpler stuff? Something I can wear to a relative's party. Do you have anything like that?"

"Well, I have recently acquired some lesser gemstones from a friend of mine who works in the south. Not lesser in their beauty, of course, only in their rarity. Every gem has its own beauty. Take this opal, for example. It is said to represent…"

Emerald tuned him out, subtly looking around the town square to make sure the guards stationed nearby weren't paying special attention to her. With so many people running away to the far away corners of the continent, Atlas was becoming emptier by the day. She would soon need to take her trade somewhere else – somewhere crowded, with lots of people to pass the blame to.

Vale? Not with the Fire Nation's approach. Patch? That could work, maybe. Or an island on the western shore? She had never tried her hand in that area before.

"So, what do you say?" the vendor asked, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Anything catch your interest, miss?"

"Oh, hmm. Yes!" she exclaimed, grudgingly forcing some joy into her voice. "That yellow one. The first one. Sorry, you showed so many it's hard to keep track of their names!"

"The opal, you mean?"

"Yes, that one!" Emerald bit her lip. "Ah, but it must cost quite a bit too…"

"Not at all. For you, I'll even consider a discount," the vendor said. "Fifteen coins."

"Fifteen?" She frowned. "But I also need to get flowers. I can't show up without flowers. How about ten? Or… twelve! I know, nobody likes a haggler, but this is a really important occasion to me…"

"Hmm…" The vendor rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a moment, then relented with a sigh and a wave of his hand. "I can work with twelve."

Emerald made a reluctant expression, then sighed dramatically and nodded. It was important to haggle not too much, so the vendor did not get annoyed, but she also had to try at least once, so he did not also start suspecting her for being so easy.

She opened her pouch and made a show of scrapping through the very bottom of it, then handed over the coins. The vendor happily took them in his palm, then put the ring in its box and pushed it towards her.

Emerald bowed gratefully, took the box and walked away, pretending to be in a hurry. As soon as she had her back turned, she groaned aloud and rolled her eyes. How could one person talk so much about gemstones! Did the man not have a life besides his trade?

Oh, well. She wasn't one to look a horse gift in the mouth. Smirking, Emerald took the ruby ring out of her pocket and slid it into her finger. A little money spent on a small piece, so she could nab the bigger one. And she could sell the opal anyways, maybe even turn up a bigger price than she had paid in the first place.

Just as she reached the edge of the town square, she heard the vendor gasp and start to shuffle through his merchandise, noticing the ruby's absence. Emerald chuckled and turned the corner.

"Emerald, Emerald, Emerald…" She stopped, hearing a familiar voice coming from an alleyway. "You're just as sly as I remember."

Emerald turned, recognizing Cinder by her amber eyes even before she was fully out of the shadows. The firebender had a warm smile on her face. Betraying her usually careful self, Emerald returned the smile just as warmly.

"And you're just as dramatic as ever," she said. "How long have you been watching? Did you come scurrying to that alleyway when you saw me coming?"

"Now, now, don't make fun." Cinder pointed a finger playfully. "I only wanted to surprise you."

Emerald laughed quietly. Her eyes wandered from Cinder's face to the bow at her back, but she did not say anything, knowing Cinder would veer the conversation that way when she wanted it.

"So, Atlas," Cinder said. "I would think this was a bad place for business these days. Or am I being ignorant? I am not a professional like you, after all."

"No, you're right. I'm leaving soon. Thinking of hitting the western isles." Emerald shrugged. "What about you? Standing in the streets of the second biggest city in the Earth Kingdom. Granted, you have the appearance right…" She gestured at Cinder's Earth Kingdom garb. "Where did you get that, by the way?"

"I met a nice woman on the road." Cinder joined her hands behind her back. "She was so kind to lend this to me."

"Ah. I see."

Emerald looked at the bow again. Cinder followed her gaze, then smirked and walked past her, stopping right by her side.

"You're wondering why I'm here. Thinking that it can't be a mere coincidence that we are in the same city, because it never is," she said. "And you're also thinking I'm not here just to see an old friend, because I never do."

"You want my help with something," Emerald said.

"Indeed. I think your particular skills might be very useful to my current endeavor." Cinder nodded. "There's a pesky princess in town, guarded by her warrior father. I'm to capture her – potentially get rid of him. What do you say?"

Emerald pursed her lips, refusing to make eye contact with her. Cinder frowned, walking around her to stand at her back, leaning her head over her shoulder. Emerald tensed, feeling the firebender's breath on the side of her neck.

"Emerald?"

"I'd… love to. But…" Emerald wet her lips, having to take a quick breath. "Your… assignments… they tend to get a little extreme."

Cinder leaned back. She walked around her again, stopping in front of Emerald, and raised a hand to cup her cheek. "Emerald," she said sweetly. "I was there for you when you had nothing. If it hadn't been for me, you would have starved. And since then, we have accomplished so many wonderful things together…" She smiled. "You're not turning your back on me now?"

Emerald breathed in deeply, then shook her head. "No. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that," she said. "I want to help."

Cinder lowered her hand. "Good. I can always count on you, Emerald." She took a step back. "Now, you are an immense help already, but I believe it is always wise to err on the side of caution on these lively matters. Tell me, does Marcus Black still operate from this city?"

"Marcus Black?" Emerald crossed her arms. "Here's the thing about him…"

* * *

The man collided against the door, knocking it off its hinges and crashing to the floor along with it. The people in the tavern threw him a glance, then turned back to their drinks. It was everyday occurrence.

Mercury followed the man out of the room and planted a foot on his chest. "Try and cheat out of paying again, and I won't be so gentle the next time," he said harshly. "Got the message, buddy?"

The man nodded enthusiastically. Mercury freed him, smirking as he struggled to stand up and ran out of the tavern.

The mercenary beat his hands together and walked to the counter, sitting on a chair and leaning forward to talk with the bartender. "Happy?"

"A fine job, as always." The bartender fished a bag of coins from under the counter and tossed it to him. "Here it is, as we negotiated."

Mercury shook the bag a little, listening to the clinking of the coins, then opened it and scoured its content. "How about we renegotiate, pal? You can cut me a better deal," he said. "After all, I've relieved you of so much trouble these past months…"

He saw the bartender's eyes narrow in annoyance and the muscles of his arms tightening. Mercury stopped smiling, slowly bringing a leg up to rest it against the vacant chair beside him. He patted his knee, all the while keeping eye contact.

"Think of it as a gesture of loyalty," he said. "You appreciate my work, and I don't… well…"

The bartender's expression soured. Reluctantly, he retrieved another bag and slid it to him, then walked out without another word. Mercury smiled contently and took his earnings.

"My," someone spoke behind him. "You were right, Emerald. He is the spitting image of his father."

Mercury turned around in his chair and saw Emerald and a strange woman standing there. The thief look nervous, as she always did inside places such as this tavern, but the other woman looked like she owned everything around her.

"Excuse me?" he asked gruffly. "Who is this, Emerald?"

Emerald opened her mouth to speak, but the stranger raised a hand, interrupting her. "My name is Cinder Fall. I'm in town to execute a certain objective, and I believe someone of your capabilities might be very helpful in my efforts." She looked him up and down. "Of course, I did not expect to be meeting with _you_. Tell me, is it true you killed old Marcus?"

Mercury glared at Emerald briefly, realizing she had told this woman about his past. How else would she know about his father?"

"I did," he said. "So what? You got a problem with that, lady?"

"Oh, no! Just the contrary. I find familiar strife much delectable," Cinder smiled. "Marcus Black, toppled his own son. Why, you must be even stronger than he was…"

Mercury leaned back smugly. "Seems so, right?" He saw Emerald roll her eyes, but did not pay her any attention.

Cinder looked around the tavern, scanning the unruly crowd scattered through it. She could feel dozens of eyes fixed on her, some out of caution, out of curiosity, out of lust… She liked this place.

"My objective is to capture a certain traitor princess, here in this very city, but first, I need to deal with her father," she said, looking back at Mercury. "You and Emerald will give me that-"

"Woah, stop right there. I don't remember agreeing to anything, lady, so don't get ahead of yourself." Mercury crossed his arms. "Let's say I take this job. From what you say, it involves a princess, and messing with royalty is stupidly dangerous. What's in it for me?"

Cinder looked at Emerald for suggestions, but the green-haired thief only shrugged in response. The huntress inspected Mercury for a moment, then took a step back and spread her arms generously.

"Name your price."

Mercury looked at her cautiously. "Is this a joke?"

"I wouldn't say something like that if I were you," Emerald said softly.

"That serious, huh?" Mercury nodded his head, mildly impressed. "Alright. How does five hundred coins sound?"

"Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom?" Cinder tilted her head inquisitively.

Mercury threw Emerald an unbelieving look, then shrugged. "How about both?"

"Done deal."

"Really?" Mercury released a short laugh. "That's it? Damn, you must be really despe-"

"But let me make one thing clear."

Suddenly, he was being pressed down on the counter behind him, his back screaming in protest. Cinder's face hovered above his, their noses separated by a hair's width.

"You can act like your little smug self. You can call me lady, girl, whatever you think makes you seem strong. I'll even allow you to treat Emerald with this deplorable attitude I've noticed during these few minutes, as long as it doesn't interfere with the job."

She lowered her head a bit more, her lips almost touching his. Mercury hissed, pain suddenly flaring in his left thigh, as if it had come into contact with fire.

"But show the slightest shred of disrespect towards me, and I'll send you to make amends with your dear father." Cinder smiled deviously. "Got the message, _buddy_?"

He nodded almost imperceptibly.

"Say it."

"I… understand."

Cinder closed her eyes, delighted by the raw fear in his voice. She stepped back, letting him go free, and turned to Emerald, who had stayed silent throughout the display – though she did not seem any disturbed by it. She was probably happy to see Mercury like that.

"Now, my friends," Cinder spoke. "Let's devise our plan of attack."

* * *

They could hear her humming and singing even before they got to the front door. To a traitor princess in hiding, their target sure wasn't subtle about her location. It so easy, they almost felt guilty.

Almost.

Emerald nodded to Mercury, and he disappeared in the shadows of a nearby alleyway. The thief turned to the rundown house, which she could only assume had been abandoned before. How else could the princess have been able to live there, without any money to spend?

She paused before the door and took a deep breath. Emerald twisted her face into a painful grimace, then knocked forcefully, putting her whole weight into the act.

A couple minutes passed, during which she heard the soft shuffling of feet, and the opening and closing of blinders. She was being watched. Then the door opened, revealing Yang Xiao Long, exactly as Cinder had described her.

"Uh, hi – woah!" Yang caught Emerald as she fell forward with no door to lean against anymore. "Are you okay?"

"N-no. I'm hurt… thief… got me…" Emerald coughed. "I-I'm sorry, I heard you and I needed help…"

"O-okay. Don't worry, I'll help," Yang frowned. "My father would be better at this, but he's out right now… Come in."

Yang stepped back, offering a hand to help her. Emerald took a step forward and pretended to fall again, watching as the princess moved to catch her – and suddenly lunged forward, jabbing Yang in the shoulder with the tip of her fingers.

Emerald grinned, following the attack with a series of similar ones, aimed at each precise point of the human body she had decorated long ago. Yang blinked in confusion, not feeling any real pain.

Finally, Emerald retreated beyond the doorway, back into the street. Yang looked at her and smiled. "Okay. You're clearly new at this," the princess said. "And you picked the worst possible target available. Don't worry, I'll be gentle."

Yang swung at the air between them. Nothing happened. She thrust her other arm, to no avail. Her eyes slowly widened as she tried to understand what was happening.

"It's no use. Your chi points – the ones that enable your firebending – are blocked." Emerald grinned. "Don't worry, it won't last forever. But that should only be a small comfort." She stepped aside. "Your turn!"

Mercury came running out of the alleyway, leaping through the air fast, aiming a kick at Yang's face. The princess gasped, raising her arms just in time to block the attack. She yelled as pain spiked through her spine and stumbled back.

"This is our target?" Mercury chuckled. "I expected more."

Yang looked up at him, her eyes sparking with fury. "I'll make you swallow those words!"

She came at him, swinging a fist. Mercury stepped around the attack and raised a knee, connecting it with her stomach. Yang doubled over, then fell to her knees.

"You're nothing without your bending," he said, then jumped and swung both legs, slamming them together on her face. Yang collapsed backwards, her eyes rolling up as her consciousness faded away.

He looked at Emerald and smiled. She met his stare stubbornly for a few seconds, then sighed. "Alright, that was impressive. I'll give you that much."

"Thank you. Your opinion carries almost as much weight as my thousand-coin bounty," he said.

"We're not done. Cinder is still dealing with the consort, and then we have to get them to the Fire Lord," Emerald noted.

"Ah, right. The Fire Lord." He groaned. "That's gonna be great."

* * *

Taiyang walked through the streets of Atlas, headed back to his temporary home and his daughter. He carried two bags of groceries in his arms, which had cost him the last of their money. At least the foods he had bought smelled very, very nice, so he would not regret the purchase anytime soon.

But this wasn't the time to linger on these thoughts. It was getting dark fast, and despite weeks having passed without Cinder making an appearance, he only grew warier every day. And that was what saved him.

He heard the arrow whizzing through the air behind him and spun away, throwing his groceries to the side. Cinder Fall stood a few meters from him, her bow raised with an arrow nocked and aimed at his head.

"We finally meet again," he said, grinning. "Got over the shock of losing so badly to an old man? Pun intended."

Cinder released her arrow. Taiyang waved a hand, burning the projectile to a crisp with a burst of fire, then joined his hands and thrust them forward, launching a spiraling inferno in her direction.

Cinder strapped her bow to her back and dashed forward, crossing her arms in front of her and leaning close to the ground. The flames diverted around her, the distance between them becoming smaller by the second.

She stopped right in front of him, bringing an arm up in a powerful chop. Taiyang blocked with an identical attack, then kicked her in the thigh, pushing her back.

"It seems like I was wrong to be so afraid of you," he taunted. "The tales about Cinder Fall are greatly exaggerated!"

Cinder scowled. She closed in again in the blink of an eye, summoning a fiery blade in her left hand and swinging it towards his head. Taiyang ducked under it, then aimed a punch at her exposed midsection. Cinder stepped around the attack and gripped his extended arm by the elbow, then pulled him forward and planted an open palm on his face.

Taiyang stood dazed for a moment, feeling something warm spill over his lips. He shook his head, regaining his bearings, and spun in place, feigning a punch. Cinder brought her arms up to block, only for a wall of fire to ignite around him, her face barely escaping unsinged.

Cinder hopped back quickly, launching small fireballs his ways to stop him from following her. Taiyang stood his ground, waiting for an opening.

The huntress looked up for a split second, and he launched a bigger fireball. Cinder jumped above the projectile and ignited two flames below her feet, propelling herself skyward. She ceased her bending after a couple seconds, landing on top of the roof of a house.

Taiyang brought a hand in front of his eyes. With the way she was positioned, the setting sun was right behind her back, making it difficult to look directly at her. A common tactic, one he was ready for.

He lowered his hand, paying less attention to what he could see, and more to what he could hear. And what he heard was the faint crackling of electricity.

"This again? Didn't you learn from last time?" Taiyang shouted.

The lightning came without warning, but he was already prepared to redirect it. His right hand raised, index and middle fingers brought together, he pointed it at the incoming attack and focused on the-

A sharp pain penetrated his arm, making him reel back and scream in pain, but that did not last more than a second, as the lightning enveloped him completely, sending him into a world of agony.

Taiyang fell to the ground, twitching, sparks flying off his skin. He looked at his arm and saw an arrow passing through it. "You… you hid it in the lightning…" Even in his pain, he managed to smile. "That's what I get… for being so arrogant…"

Cinder crouched beside him, her amber eyes inspecting him with malicious glee. "Indeed, Consort. Even men your age still have valuable lessons to be taught to them," she smirked. "Too bad you won't get to make anything out of this one."

She brought a fist down, and his world turned black.

* * *

Mercury dropped Yang on the soft grass outside of Atlas, letting her drop on her side with hands tied behind her back. She was still out cold, but Emerald had insisted they be safe anyway.

Cinder put down Taiyang beside his daughter, then examined the two of them. Her companions watched her in silence, waiting cautiously for a verdict.

"Good work," Cinder said finally, her lips curving into a slight smile. "I knew I made a good investment recruiting you two."

"An investment?" Emerald repeated dubiously. "Mercury, sure. He's happy to have his pockets full soon. What about me?"

"What about you?" Cinder turned to her. "You never said you needed payment, Emerald. If there's anything you want, say it."

Emerald looked at her fixedly for a moment, then blinked and bowed her head. "N-nothing." She glared sideways at Mercury. "I'm not a materialistic jerk like this guy."

"You're literally a thief," Mercury said. "But think whatever you like. I'm just happy that I don't have to scurry around picking up other people's straps, like a certain someone I know."

"Why, you…" Emerald clenched her fists and started towards him.

"Enough," Cinder's voice rang through the hills. Emerald and Mercury glanced at each other, then eased their stances. Cinder nodded. "Let's get going."

* * *

The first thing Yang heard as she awakened was the quiet crackling of embers, at the same time that the familiar scent of smoke filled her nostrils. She coughed softly, then forced her eyes open, even as her head throbbed in pain.

Her back was resting against the rough surface of a tree, and her wrists were tied together behind her by rope. She blinked a few times, adjusting her blurry vision, until she could make out a dark clearing, the campfire in the middle of it, and the people surrounding her.

At the opposite end of the clearing was her father, in a situation much similar to hers, except he was still out cold. Then there were her unknown assailants – the green-haired girl and the silver-haired boy – sitting around the fire. And last, but certainly not least, Cinder Fall, standing at the edge of the clearing, looking up at the night sky.

Yang coughed again, and Cinder's amber eyes fell upon her. The huntress turned and walked towards her, looking down at her. Yang felt the urge to kick her in the legs and let her crash to the ground, but she didn't even have the strength to do that.

"Did you sleep well, princess?" Cinder asked, drawing her words out, as if to bask in her victory.

"Grr… Smug little…" Yang coughed several times, the pain suddenly intensifying.

Cinder crouched in front of her and laid a hand on her forehead. Yang moaned, leaning into her touch, then suddenly realized what she was doing and recoiled harshly.

"I'm sorry. Mercury was far too violent with you," Cinder said. "But then again… That was what I hired him for."

"C-co… coward…" Yang forced the words out, giving her the worst glare she could muster.

"Coward? For not capturing you myself?" Cinder raised an eyebrow. "I suppose. But you don't really believe you are a match for me, do you? You're not. And that's exactly why I sent Emerald and Mercury to do the job…" She grinned. "So I could focus on what required a more personal touch."

Yang tried to respond, but her mouth refused to work. Cinder looked at her, and for a moment, the blond came close to believing she was actually sorry.

"You really are in bad shape…" Cinder muttered. "I must have something to help you get better. Your father too, but he's not a priority…"

"Y-you… it's always… about the j-job…" Yang grunted. "W-why?!"

Cinder's brow furrowed, as if she were trying to make sense of her question. "Why… what? Why do I care? Why do I do this?"

Yang nodded fervently at the last guess.

"Ah. It's rather simple, actually," Cinder said. "This job gives me a sense of accomplishment nothing else can provide." She leaned forward, whispering so only Yang could hear. "You see, I could be a thief like Emerald and have control of entire cities, or I could be a thug like Mercury and be feared in all the corners of the world… But that's too little for me. I'm destined for so much more…"

Yang stared at her, thinking how insane someone had to be to say something like that. It would be laughable, if it weren't so disturbing.

Cinder looked her in the eyes, and she lifted a finger, laying it softly on Yang's face and running a trail down the side of it. "One day, princess, I'll be so powerful… You'll realize how bad of a move running away from mommy's protection was.

"She never… protected me." Yang grit her teeth. "She couldn't care less about me!"

Cinder shrugged. "Far be it for me to argue with you. She is not _my_ mother, after all." She stood up and backed away a little. "Let me see if I have something to help you with that pain. I'm not that knowledgeable on herbs, but-"

She stopped talking, amber eyes jumping to the darkness surrounding the clearing. Emerald and Mercury looked at her warily, then started to look around too.

Yang heard the rustling of leaves, and suddenly, a dozen men and women in white and black uniforms stepped into the light of the campfire. A moment later, another man appeared, resting a huge scythe on his shoulder.

"Cinder Fall," Qrow said, sporting his usual dry grin. "It's been years. You never write. I thought you didn't care about me anymore."

Cinder's shoulders dropped, and she joined her hands behind her back, completely at ease. "You aren't worth the ink. Besides, where would I sent the letter to?"

"Well, I can't tell you, but maybe you could come along and I'll show you." Qrow chuckled.

Yang had half the mind to scream at him for flirting with the enemy, but that would only make her hurt worse.

"I'll have to pass on the offer," Cinder said, her face growing serious. "Now, be courteous and leave my sight. I'll pretend I never saw you or your companions."

"Sure! But first let me collect my niece and her jerk of a father," Qrow replied. "I'm thinking if you let me do that, no little firebender lass has to lose her head tonight. What do you say?"

"I say…" Cinder drew a hand to the side, igniting a small flame. " _Leave_."

Qrow gripped his scythe with both hands. His companions drew their weapons and bended their elements in preparation. Emerald and Mercury assumed fighting stances.

A red-eyed bird flew down from the sky, its feathers blacker than the night itself, and landed on Cinder's shoulder. She looked at it, and everyone stood frozen as she retrieved a small scroll from its peak and opened it.

"Hmm. You're in luck." Cinder burned the paper to a crisp and looked at Qrow again. "Take your family and leave."

"…What?" Qrow said, and Yang thought that was the first time she witnessed him so surprised, not to mention disgusted. "Is that thing a _Grimm_?"

Cinder looked at the bird and ran a hand over its head. Its red eyes never left the rogue leader. "I'm giving you the chance to leave, as you asked," she said. "Take it, before my patience runs out."

Qrow stared at her in suspicion, but slowly lowered his scythe. He gestured to his companions, and they quickly set about freeing Yang and her father.

Yang was brought to stand beside her uncle. She looked up at him, and he smiled at her and put an arm around her shoulder to support her. "Let's go, kiddo. Your father looks like he needs some serious help, and fast."

He turned and lead her out of the clearing. Yang glanced back at Cinder, taking in her impassive expression, and was relieved to finally be safe from that absolute lunatic.

* * *

For minutes, not a word was spoken in the camp. Cinder hadn't left the spot she had been standing on when the rebels had left. The bird was still perched on her shoulder, its attention now on Emerald, rendering the girl unable to speak.

Finally, Mercury let out a long breath and strode towards Cinder. "What was that about? We could have taken them, and you just let them take our-"

Cinder's eyes found his, and he came to an immediate halt. The huntress shook her shoulder slightly, and the bird flew away, blending in to the night sky.

"I thought I made myself clear," Cinder said coldly. "Emerald. Did I make myself clear?"

Emerald gulped. "Y-you did."

" _Mercury_?"

"…You did."

Cinder walked to him and slapped him. Mercury stumbled back, holding his aching cheek.

"Then don't ever question me again."

Mercury nodded weakly and sat down near the fire. Cinder breathed in deeply, then smiled and released a short, melodious laugh.

"We have a new objective," she said. "How do you feel about hunting the last airbender?"


	25. The Invincible Girl

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Five: The Invincible Girl**

* * *

Jaune rubbed his stomach and groaned, the familiar feeling of hunger hitting once again. He took his pouch from his belt and shook it a little, but there was nothing left inside, not even crumbles.

"Uh, sorry to ask," he spoke up hesitantly. "But does anyone have a little food to spare?"

Weiss looked back over her shoulder and stopped walking, causing Ruby to crash into her, as she had been too occupied with examining the map on her hands. The redhead glared mildly at her, then stepped around her and continued walking down the road.

"I believe I have some bread left," Weiss said. "Unlike you and Ruby, I know how to control myself."

"Yes, yes. I am a dum-dum, I won't argue with you there." Jaune made a whimpering noise. "Food, please…?"

Weiss shook her head slightly, but handed him a loaf of bread anyway. "Consider being a little more conservative, perhaps then you won't-"

Almost as soon as the bread was in Jaune's hands, half of it was gone, devoured in a single bite. Weiss just stared at him, one eye twitching.

"We are doomed."

"Fret not, princess Weiss!" Ruby declared, suddenly reappearing by their side. "Heading north, we shall soon come across a quaint little village, ripe with eating goods to replenish our stocks! How wonderful!"

Jaune stopped munching for a moment. "…Why are you trying to talk posh like that?"

"I don't know." Ruby shrugged. "I thought it would be cool. Was it cool?"

"Very," Weiss said dryly, then took the map from her hands. "Ruby. That village is to the south. You were holding the map upside down."

"Really? For how long?" Ruby's eyes widened. "Oh no! Where are we?!"

Weiss folded the map and sighed. "We are _extremely_ doomed."

* * *

Despite Weiss' pessimism, they reached the village without facing any further trouble, a few hours later after taking a slight detour on the road to Vale. This would take them a little further from Atlas than they were comfortable with, but making up the time lost would be easy.

The village was considerably big, compared to most they had passed through in their travels. Perhaps in a couple more decades, it could grow so much as to be considered a proper city.

There was a surprising amount of people in the street, considering the approaching Fire Nation army. Ruby frowned, wondering if they didn't know about that, or if they simply weren't worried.

"Hey, does this place have a name?" Jaune asked out of the blue.

"Why would you want to know?" Weiss raised an eyebrow dubiously.

"Well, half the villages we've visited didn't have names. When they did, it usually meant they were important in some way or another," he explained. "So, following that logic, we can predict whether anything significant is going to happen here by figuring out if it has a name!"

Weiss rolled her eyes, but decided to humor him nonetheless. She took out the map and opened it, casting a quick glance at their location. "Mistral," she said, then shot him a mild glare. "Ring any bells?"

Jaune's eyes widened. Weiss leaned towards him, pausing momentarily in surprise. Then he shrugged and raised his hands apologetically. "Nope."

Weiss huffed in disappointment.

Ruby spun around, quickly taking in the scenario surrounding them once again. Everyone looked happy, without a care in the world except for their jobs and whatever activities they had to carry out today. Her anxiousness slowly faded away, leaving space for a reencountered excitement.

"Hey, Weiss!" She turned around to face the princess, walking backwards. "Do you think we can make a stop here, just for a couple of days?"

"A stop? I'm not sure that is wise." Weiss furrowed her brow. "The Fire Nation is coming, Ruby. We mustn't waste a minute getting to Vale and contacting the Earth Queen."

"But we gained so much time taking that path through the mountains! We're weeks ahead of the Fire Nation now," Ruby said. "We won't stay long. And resting in a proper bed and eating some homemade food will help us move even faster once hit the road again!"

"Hmm. We haven't truly rested in a while, that is true." Weiss nodded. "Okay. But only two days. No more than that."

"Yes!" Jaune exclaimed happily. "Real food! I can't wait! Ruby, you're the best."

Ruby raised her thumbs positively and flashed Weiss a wide smile. The princess replied with a smaller one, then stretched her arms above her head, allowing herself to relax at last.

* * *

They found an inn at the center of town and rented a room there, then sat down in the living hall to grab themselves a meal. Weiss was convinced to use the money her father had granted her to order something a little more expensive than necessary, which meant some meat for Jaune, and vegetable soup for herself and Ruby.

"Man. This is the best idea you've ever had, Ruby," Jaune said, smiling happily as he laid down the silverware on his plate. His eyes were almost hypnotized by the sight of his succulent meal. "I mean, aside from a lot of actually important stuff. But, you know…"

"I agree," Ruby moaned, sniffing her soup. "I am pretty awesome…"

Weiss just hummed, trying to appear indifferent, while in truth she was barely keeping herself from slurping down her soup like she was stranded on a desert. She still needed to keep up appearances, after all.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, the only noises being produced by Ruby and Jaune's enthusiasm. Weiss dined quietly, keeping an eye on their surroundings vaguely. She wasn't worried about an ambush or anything of the like, but the number of people in the inn was unusual.

Eventually, a waitress approached them, smiling politely, even as Jaune made a particularly rude slurping noise and burped. Weiss kicked him in the shin under the table, then turned to the woman.

"Is everything to your liking, ma'am?" the waitress asked. "Is there anything else you'd like to order?"

"No. I think my friends and I have had more than enough for one night," Weiss said. "Could I ask you a question, unrelated to your services?"

"Of course," the waitress said. "I am more than happy to help you with anything. We haven't been getting many visitors lately, what with the invasion going on."

"Ah. That is exactly what I wanted to ask about," Weiss said. "You are aware of the invasion, but from what we've seen, no one in town looks… worried. Life seems to be going on as usual. Aren't you afraid of what might happen when the Fire Nation gets here?"

Ruby stopped eating to pay attention to the conversation. She saw the waitress fidget a little, but aside from that, her gentle demeanor did not change.

"Well, there is no doubt that they could do some terrible things when they get here, but…" The waitress smiled, her eyes shining a bit. "We have someone to protect us."

"Someone? Like who, the Avatar?" Ruby made an innocent expression. "'Cause, you know, I'm sure she'd help, but I don't think she'd stay here that long… _if_ she was even here, that is."

"No, not the Avatar. I'm talking about the Invincible Girl!" the waitress declared. "She's been protecting Mistral from the Grimm and the Fire Nation for years, and she's never let us down before. If the firebenders try to hurt us, she'll drive them away, for sure!"

"Really? And this is one girl?" Weiss raised an eyebrow the waitress' way. "That's optimistic."

"There's a reason she's called the Invincible Girl. Some say she's the most powerful earthbender alive."

Weiss hummed, intrigued by that revelation. She looked to the side and almost jumped off her chair, noticing Ruby was leaning towards her with her eyes wide open.

"Ruby!" Weiss exclaimed. "What are you doing, you dolt?!"

"Excuse me, miss, but where can we find this girl?" Ruby asked, ignoring her.

"She lives at the edge of town. It's not hard to find her home, just ask around," the waitress replied, then bowed. "Excuse me, I need to get back to the other costumers. Is there really nothing else you want?"

Jaune tore a piece off his meat and swallowed with chewing. "More meat!" he yelled.

"No! No more meat, you troglodyte!" Weiss slapped his wrist, then turned and smiled politely to the waitress. "Thank you for your service."

The woman left without a word, though her disturbance was evident on her face. When she was gone, Weiss shook her head and looked at Ruby.

"Why did you want to know where this Invincible Girl lives?" she asked. "Are you thinking about paying her a visit?"

"The waitress said she's the most powerful earthbender alive, right? And I need someone to teach me earthbending," Ruby said. "I can't think of a better master!"

"I don't know. One girl defending a village this big, all by her lonesome?" Weiss crossed her arms testily. "This story sounds awfully exaggerated."

"You think?" Ruby leaned forward, resting her head on her hands and smiling smugly. "I know a girl who can defend _the whole world_ all by herself…"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "It used to be I thought you were the humblest person I knew," she said. "That time has passed. You should be ashamed of-"

Jaune interrupted her with a burp.

"You know what? Forget what I was saying, Ruby." Weiss groaned in disgust. "At least you're not a pig like him."

Ruby squealed quietly, shaking her head with joy.

* * *

The wind blew gently across the clearing, causing the leaves to rustle and fall from the trees around her. Clouds of dirt rose from the ground, filling her nostrils with an earthy aroma. Her body shook as the tremors grew closer and closer, the intervals between each step narrowing…

Suddenly, she spun around and raised her shield, blocking the Ursa's mighty blow. She didn't move an inch, and neither did she flinch, her emerald eyes focused on the Grimm's red ones.

Kicking into gear, she jumped at the beast, kneeing it in the chest and driving it away from her, its feet dragging long stretch marks on the ground. She landed back on her feet, the shockwaves produced by the impact familiarizing her to the landscape around her.

She felt three more Ursas coming up behind her. These ones were smaller, the first one apparently being their pack leader, but that didn't make them any less dangerous. Not even thinking, she kicked back, striking the ground with the back of her left ankle. Rocky spires rose behind her, each bigger than the last, until they finally reached the Grimm.

One of them died instantly, turning to smoke, but the other two dodged to the sides and closed in on her. She bashed one in the face with her shield, then flipped over the other. Before landing, she flicked a wrist, sending a boulder bursting from the ground and into the Grimm, killing it.

She landed, immediately hopping back to dodge the swipe of a claw, and threw another boulder at the remaining Grimm. It burst right through it and continued soaring towards the leader, but the Ursa Major swung its arms in an x-shape, breaking it.

The creature was exuding hatred now more than ever, its drive to kill her overwhelming its feeble mind. It charged at her, roaring, but she stood her ground. When it was ten paces from her, she threw her shield, hitting the Ursa in the nostril. The monster stumbled back in a daze for a moment, then straightened up and glared at her, prepared to attack again…

She raised her arms, and from the left and right of the Ursa, two huge rocks emerged. She slapped her hands together, and the two rocks clashed against each other, squashing the beast between them. When she let go control of them and they crumbled to the ground, there was nothing left but smoke.

She smiled and pointed a hand at her fallen shield, preparing to…

"Wow!" someone shouted somewhere behind her. "Nice job!"

She nearly yelled, turning around abruptly to see a trio of strangers standing there. They looked just about her age, except the redhead in the lead. She looked younger. And there was something… familiar about her. Where had she seen her before?

"Uh, hi," the redhead smiled nervously. "Sorry. Did we scare you?"

"No. I'm just surprised. I should have felt you coming, that's all," she smiled. "I guess I was too busy dealing with those Grimm."

"Yeah? That was awesome!" the girl exclaimed, punching the air. "First you were really _pow_!, and then you went _pah_! and then _woosh_! over them and then _kabaam-_ "

"I think she gets the point, Ruby," the white-haired girl beside her said.

"It wasn't all that impressive," the earthbender looked away bashfully. "They were just everyday Grimm. Business as usual." She looked at the strangers again, walking closer. "Anyway… What are you three doing out here? Did you get lost?"

The redhead – Ruby, that name rang a bell, yes – shook her head. "People said you'd be out here. You're the Invincible Girl, right?"

"Uhm… sure. Though I'd prefer if you called me Pyrrha," she said. "You were looking for me, then?"

"Yep. I'm Ruby. This is Weiss. And this is Jaune. We were looking for-"

Pyrrha tuned her out, leaning to the side slightly to peer at the blond boy behind Ruby. He looked awkward standing next to the babbling Ruby and the serene-looking Weiss, like he didn't know what to do with his hands and feet and eyes and… everything…

It was kinda cute.

"-so that's why we're here." Ruby finished.

Pyrrha blinked. "Sorry. I… missed pretty much everything you just said. Could you repeat?"

Ruby opened her mouth to start over, but Weiss raised a hand, stopping her. "It's okay. She talks so much, I ignore her a lot too," she said. Ruby looked a little offended at first, but then she shrugged and smiled apologetically. "To summarize: Ruby needs an earthbending teacher, and you seem like the best candidate for that position."

"She _needs_ an earthbending teacher?" Pyrrha repeated curiously.

"You forgot to tell her I'm the Avatar," Ruby said. "See, I might take a long time to explain stuff, but at least I don't leave out the important details!"

Pyrrha took a longer look at Ruby, suddenly realizing where she knew her from. There were posters of her everywhere lately, announcing the return of the Avatar. There were even some from the Fire Nation which included a reward for her capture.

"Well. That's… a lot to take in." Pyrrha paused. "How about you come home with me, and we can talk more there? I want to want more before I make such a huge decision."

"Sure!" Ruby exclaimed. "Lead the way!"

* * *

"Wow. This place sure is…" Jaune gulped. "Spacious."

Weiss followed his gaze, examining the high ceiling of Pyrrha's house. It was curved much like a dome, which was uncommon for most of the houses they had seen throughout the Earth Kingdom. It was less practical than it was stylish. Not only that, but just the entrance hall seemed to go on forever. What would the rest of the house look like?

"Agreed," Weiss muttered.

"You don't think she's a princess or anything like that, right?" Jaune asked. "For once I'd like to meet a girl who isn't some kind of special."

"You're exaggerating," Weiss said. "We've met plenty of normal girls."

"Name one."

"Nora."

"Okay. She was kind of crazy though. Plus, that was ages ago. Gimme another."

"Coco. Velvet too."

"Same thing. I barely remember what they look like. _And_ they were really good fighters."

"…Blake?"

"No, _she_ had that whole faunus freedom fighter thing going on." Jaune sighed. "Admit it. I'm just a dude in the middle of a bunch of extraordinary girls."

"Okay. I'll give you that." Weiss turned slightly to pat him in the head. "But at least you're not bitter about it. And if I were in your shoes, I'd be ecstatic."

"I _am_ ecstatic," Jaune said in a dead tone. "Not even joking. I'm ecstatic right now."

"… _Right_ ," Weiss smiled sympathetically. "One day, Jaune. One day."

Meanwhile, Ruby was not so much interested at the house as she was at who lived in it. Pyrrha was walking ahead with her, telling her about Mistral and some encounters with Grimm she had had in the past. She tried to make the stories sound less grand than they actually were, but Ruby was impressed by them nonetheless and kept asking for more.

"You took a whole pack of Death Stalkers all by yourself?!" Ruby exclaimed.

"I-it wasn't a pack. Just a couple. Maybe three." Pyrrha blushed. "I think one of them was really young too."

"Like you were?" Ruby's eyes narrowed. "Twelve years old. Taking on freaking Death Stalkers while I was – grrrr…"

"Are you… mad? Did I say something wrong?" Pyrrha asked, starting to panic.

"No. It's just… you're almost too perfect," Ruby said, letting out a huge breath. "You really have to be my teacher, Pyrrha."

"We'll see about that."

Pyrrha pushed open a set of double doors, and they entered what looked to be the dining room. A big round table was set in the middle, tea and small foods distributed on it. A woman was sitting on one of the chairs, sipping from a foamy cup. She looked a lot like Pyrrha, except older and with her red hair tied up in a bun.

She looked at them in mild surprise, then put down her cup and stood up. "Pyrrha. You've brought friends." She smiled kindly. "I don't recognize you. Travelers, I take?"

"Mother, these are Ruby, Weiss and Jaune," Pyrrha introduced them in turns. "And yes, they are travelers… of a kind."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Nikos." Weiss bowed. She eyed Ruby and Jaune accusatorily, and they imitated her clumsily.

"Oh, my. So polite! I like these new friends," Mrs. Nikos said. "Sit down. Have anything you want."

"They aren't here just for pleasantries, Mother," Pyrrha said. "Where's Father? I think he would like to be here for this."

"Hmm… He must be in his workshop again. That man never rests more than a few minutes!" her mother said. "I'll go fetch him. Meanwhile, feel at home - I won't be gone long."

She left through another door, disappearing in a long hallway. Pyrrha sat down and indicated for the others to do the same. They did so, Ruby and Jaune entering into an intense glaring contest as they immediately reached for the same plate of cookies.

Weiss only shook her head at them. She should be accustomed to this kind of behavior by now, she really should. "So. Pyrrha." She turned to their host. "Is your family important in town? Your house is quite… Well, it's not that different from my father's palace in the North Pole. Perhaps you fill some kind of leadership role here?"

"Not at all. Well, I do protect the village, and everyone is very grateful for that, but we don't get any special treatment," Pyrrha said. "My father is an architect. He made the plans for this house when he was my age, but he only started building it after I was born." She rubbed the back of her neck. "I… helped a little."

"Dear Avatar ancestors…" Ruby stared at her in awe. "You're too perfect…"

"It was just lifting weights! With earthbending!" Pyrrha exclaimed, her face completely red.

"But there are so many materials involved in building a structure like this," Weiss noted, looking around. "Earthbending would only carry you so far. You can make a mold of sorts, I suppose, but then there's reinforcing and supporting with things like metal and…"

She paused, looking straight at Pyrrha. The earthbender smiled nervously, limping a little in her chair. Ruby's eyes widened, and she slowly leaned closer to Pyrrha.

"No… way…"

Mrs. Nikos entered the room again, practically dragging her husband by the ear. The poor man looked somewhere between depressed and relieved, the sure sign of someone who enjoyed his work a little more than was healthy.

She plopped him down in a chair, then sat down herself. Mr. Nikos righted his posture and looked at Pyrrha and the visitors, then smiled widely. "Hello! New friends, sweetheart?"

"Yes, Father," Pyrrha said, introducing the trio quickly. "We met in the woods while I was taking care of some Grimm. They were actually looking for me. You see, Ruby is…"

"I'm the Avatar!" Ruby jumped to her feet and executed a series of elaborate bows and gestures.

"Sit down, you doofus," Weiss said through gritted teeth, pulling her back to her chair. "I swear, sometimes…"

Mr. Nikos examined Ruby curiously for a moment. "And why has the Avatar taken such an interest in my daughter?"

"Well, you see… I kinda have this Avatar duty to learn the four elements. Plus, the Fire Nation is going crazy and I have to put a stop to that, which means I have to learn faster than normal," Ruby explained. "Pyrrha is, like, the best earthbender ever. So I'd like her to teach me - if that's okay with you guys!"

Pyrrha's parents shared a concerned look. "That is an incredible request. To teach an Avatar… It's difficult to think of something more honorable than that," Mr. Nikos said. "But it would also put a target on Pyrrha's back, and with the way the Fire Nation has been behaving lately…"

"She is already a target, though. Anyone who's not Fire Nation is a target," Mrs. Nikos pointed out. "And she can handle herself, can she not?"

"She most certainly can." He sighed. "Yes. This is indeed an incredible request. I'll admit it would make me much less worried if Pyrrha said no, but… Ultimately, it is her choice."

"I agree. Honey, it's up to you."

They all turned to look at Pyrrha. She flinched slightly, her eyes falling to an empty cup in front of her. She quickly filled it with tea and took a sip, then closed her eyes for a moment.

"I'd… very much like you to teach you, Ruby. It would be an honor… but…" She paused. "I'm assuming that would mean leaving the village?"

"Yes," Weiss answered. "We can't stay at any one place for long, unfortunately. And we need to get to the capital and talk to the Earth Queen to organize an alliance between your kingdom and the Water Tribe."

"Not to mention the army of fire lunatics marching this way," Jaune added. "Sorry if that's a sensitive topic, but…"

"I understand. And that's why I must decline your request," Pyrrha stood up. "I'm sorry. I really am. But I can't leave Mistral defenseless against the invasion. Everyone is counting on me."

The room was silent for a long while, the trio of travelers too shocked by her answer to say anything. Pyrrha's mother stood up and walked to her, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you staying at an inn?" she asked, looking at her guests. Weiss nodded. "Forget that. You can sleep here tonight. And if you change your mind about leaving, you can stay as long as you like."

"They won't change their minds, Mother," Pyrrha said. "They have their duty to fulfill, just as I have mine." She turned around, forcing a smile. "Speaking of that. I cut my patrol short today. There may still be more Grimm nearby town."

She grabbed her shield from beside her chair and mounted it on her back, then left the room.

Ruby sank in her chair, crossing her arms dejectedly. Weiss looked at her, smiling slightly.

"Cheer up, Ruby," the princess said. "There's still a whole village for us to explore! This won't be a total waste."

"Okay. That's… nice." Ruby looked away. "I guess I got my hopes up too fast."

"There will be others earthbenders to ask," Weiss stated. "Right, Jaune?"

Jaune looked back at the door Pyrrha had left through, frowning. "Yeah," he said. "There will be others."

* * *

Ruby leaned her head on one hand, sitting on a bench in the street while watching in boredom as Weiss perused a salesman's wares for anything useful. Usually she would be all for finding new, interesting stuff when they visited towns like Mistral, but Ruby was just not in the mood for that now.

Pyrrha's dejection had struck a powerful blow against her confidence. Ruby had gotten used to people going along with her plans because she was the Avatar. Even chieftain Jacques had allowed her to bypass his tribe's sacred laws and get straight into training under a Grandmaster. And now here she sat, having received a firm _no_ , and with no reason to believe Pyrrha would change her mind anytime soon.

Not that she thought any ill of her for turning her down. Pyrrha had a very good reason for staying, one that Ruby could see herself making if she were in her shoes – in fact, it was pretty much what she was doing all the time. Ruby had the world to protect. Pyrrha's world was smaller, but it was still just as important to her.

Oh, well. As Weiss had said, there would be other people. And there was always the Earth Queen as a last resort… though she doubted someone like her would have the time to teach her.

"Ruby," Weiss said, returning to her with a hand behind her back. "Look what I found."

She showed her hand, revealing a sealed scroll. Ruby took it, casting a curious look at her, then opened the scroll. "What is this…?"

"An earthbending manual!" Weiss said. "Kind of. It only covers the very basics, from what I understand. But it's as good a starting point as any."

"Not as good as Pyrrha," Ruby pointed out. "It's neat, though. Maybe I can teach myself with it, just until we find a proper master." She looked up at her friend and smiled. "Thanks, Weiss."

"Don't mention it."

Weiss sat down beside her, looking over her shoulder as Ruby examined the contents of the scroll. There were many depictions of people assuming poses and doing minor earthbending feats, along with a few scribbles detailing the images.

Ruby pursed her lips. This could be helpful, but not to her. She remembered her mother had tried to have her learn some airbending moves from scrolls like this one, but it hadn't worked at all. Ruby was a hands-on, talking and listening kind of student.

"This won't really work for you, will it?" Weiss asked quietly, noticing how sullen she had gotten.

"It's fine. We'll make it work," Ruby said. "Maybe it'll help if you pretend to be an earthbender and try to learn along with me."

"Oh, yes. And that won't be in any way embarrassing," Weiss replied dryly.

"Sorry. It's just that…" Ruby sighed. "Remember the Three Kings' Path and the stuff we saw passing through it?"

"Yes. The stuff that we _hallucinated_ because of the enclosure and the dust from the cave's unique mineral formation," Weiss said, discreetly sliding away from Ruby. "What about it?"

"Well, I saw my future, and that future included Pyrrha," Ruby explained. "She is supposed to teach me. I'm sure of it."

Weiss crossed her arms. "And you were banking Pyrrha's acceptance on that assumption?" She smiled kindly. "See, Ruby? The fact that Pyrrha _won't_ teach you just proves my point that the Path wasn't magic at all."

Ruby huffed. "You could sound less smug about it."

Weiss shrugged, then stood up and offered her a hand. "Come on, you've done enough moping around for the day. Let's give that earthbending scroll a try." She chuckled. "Also, we should find Jaune. Maybe _he_ can pretend to be an earthbender for you."

"That's a great idea!" Ruby exclaimed happily, taking her hand.

* * *

Pyrrha closed the door of her room behind her, being as quiet as possible. She could feel the slight vibrations of her parents and guests sleeping in their own rooms. She couldn't sleep herself, and lying in bed wasn't making her feel any better.

She walked quietly through the house, arriving at the front door in a couple of minutes. She went out and closed her eyes, turning her face up to feel the breeze brushing against her skin.

Why was this so difficult? She knew she was right in her decision. It was the responsible thing to do. Yet something about it felt so wrong, and it was eating at her from the inside.

She opened her eyes and started to walk, but stopped almost immediately. She could not only feel someone moving somewhere nearby, but could also hear laborious breathing and what sounded like metal cutting through air. Curious, Pyrrha circled around the house, entering the garden.

It didn't take her long to find the origin of the disturbance. Jaune was by himself, his sword in his hands, sweat pouring down his forehead. She stood silently for a while, watching as he changed from one pose to another, making elaborate slashes with his sword.

Realizing she was staring and how rude that was, Pyrrha cleared her throat and approached him. Jaune turned at once, his eyes widening in surprise. He tried to sheathe his sword, but missed the sheath entirely and the weapon fell on the grass with a dull noise.

"Hi," Pyrrha said, stifling a giggle as he picked up the sword and pretended nothing had happened. "Training so late?"

"Yeah. A warrior must never stop training. Never," Jaune said. "H-how long have you been watching?"

"I just got here," Pyrrha replied. "You can continue, if you want."

Jaune looked at her for a moment, then turned and assumed another stance. He slashed hesitantly, almost losing his balance, but he regained it fast, if not elegantly. Pyrrha felt that wasn't on purpose, but that didn't make it any less impressive.

"So… you couldn't sleep?" Jaune asked, slashing again.

"Yes. I have a lot to think about," Pyrrha said.

"About Ruby's request?"

"About denying it." Pyrrha sighed, walking to stand opposite of him, still leaving him space to practice. "I wish I could go with you guys. But I have a responsibility towards Mistral and its people. It would be dishonorable to abandon them now."

Jaune hummed, making a series of three slashes. He started to stumble, but Pyrrha raised a mound of dirt beneath his foot, stabilizing him. He kept going, apparently not even noticing her help.

"You said something before, about everyone here counting on you or something," Jaune said. "Isn't that a bit too much? Putting the safety of an entire village on one person's shoulders?"

"I'm very capable," Pyrrha said quietly.

"I've noticed," Jaune smiled at her, then focused on his swordsmanship again. "You know who else is capable? Ruby. She's the Avatar, but she still has friends to help her. She has Weiss, and me, and lots of other people." He shrugged. "It doesn't mean she couldn't make do by herself… But we sure make her job easier."

"And what does that mean for me?" Pyrrha asked. "How does it help me with protecting my home?"

"I don't know. I'm just saying, when you're with other people, when you have friends by your side… you become more than the person you think you can be," Jaune said. "But what do I know? Maybe that only applies to me. I'm just an ordinary dude, and you're the Invincible Girl."

"You shouldn't sell yourself short, Jaune.

They fell into a comfortable silence, Jaune practicing while Pyrrha watched and pondered his words. They didn't offer a solution on how to protect her village and still do what she wanted, but they did resonate with her. She now recognized what she had been feeling since she rejected Ruby.

It was longing. Longing for something greater. For being with these new, amazing people she had met today. For doing something more than protecting her home.

"I'm going to bed," she said, walking past Jaune. "Try putting less weight on your left leg."

"What, now you're a sword master too?" Jaune asked, pausing his training to face her.

"Absolutely not." Pyrrha giggled. "But I can feel you straining your leg when you move, which then makes you put too much momentum on your swings… and then you lose your balance."

"Are you _sure_ you're not a sword master?" Jaune leered at her suspiciously.

"I swear on my earthbending," Pyrrha said solemnly. "Is that good enough for you?"

"You could still use a sword without your bending," Jaune pointed out humorously. "Alright. Sleep well. And thanks for the advice."

"It was my pleasure."

Pyrrha watched him for a little while more, then walked away.

* * *

Shortly after lunch the next day, the trio decided to continue on their journey. They went to the edge of town, accompanied by Pyrrha and her parents, who refused to let them go without giving some supplies for the road beforehand.

"Thank you, Mrs. Nikos, but this is unnecessary," Weiss said. "We can't accept your money. And your food? This is far too much…"

"Uhm, yes we can," Ruby said behind her, eyeing a particularly large bag of cookies.

"We _really can't_ ," Weiss insisted, grinding her teeth in annoyance.

Mrs. Nikos shook her head, refusing to take back the supplies. "This is the least we can do," she said. "You are saving our kingdom and the world, after all. It would be irresponsible to let you go without offering our help."

Weiss sighed, grudgingly accepting the supplies. She turned to look at Ruby, who was busy standing nearby, dragging one foot on the dirt while avoiding eye contact with Pyrrha. The earthbender seemed just as intent on doing the same thing regarding her.

"Alright," Weiss said. "Come on, Ruby. Let's get-"

She was interrupted by a hoarse scream. Soon a man appeared on the distance, running at full speed towards the village. He passed through the welcoming gate and halted after the group, turning to look at them wide-eyed.

"What's going on?" Ruby asked, assuming her Avatar tone of voice and posture. "Do you need help?"

"They… they came from out of nowhere, on those… things…" The man bent down, resting his hands on his knees and breathing shakily.

"What do you-"

"It's a Fire Nation scouting squad," Pyrrha interrupted, her eyes closed. "I can feel them coming. They're on rhinos." She opened her eyes and nodded to the man. "I'll take care of this. Mother, Father, warn the rest of the village. Nobody is to come outside."

Her parents followed her orders without hesitation, taking the strange man along with them. Pyrrha glanced at Ruby and her friends, then walked out of the town's borders, towards the incoming Fire Nation.

It didn't take long for them to appear. As she had sensed, there were ten rhinos stampeding towards the town, though there were two to three soldiers mounted in each.

They stopped before her, the leading officer taking his ride a little farther to look down at Pyrrha.

"I recommend you turn back now," she said. "You seek to conquer my people, and I will fight you if that's what it takes to stop you."

"Oh, I see. So you fancy yourself this town's protector?" The officer turned up his chin. "You're just a girl. Stand aside."

Pyrrha looked up at him, her eyes sparking. "I am not just _some girl_."

He snarled, bringing an arm down to rain fire on her. Her shield was raised in an instant, blocking the flames and diverting them around her. Pyrrha raised the ground below her, propelling herself upward and kicking the man in the face, knocking him clean off his mount.

She landed on the rhino's saddle, standing tall to face the rest of the soldiers. "Anyone else still want to try?"

For a moment, it looked like they were intimated, but them the officer got up and yelled at them to attack. At once, they charged at her, brandishing blades, spears and fire. Pyrrha jumped off the rhino, deflecting attacks with her shield, then landed and got to work.

She kicked the ground, forcing the riders to abandon their mounts as spires appeared on their path or below them. This did not deter them for long, as now she was facing thirty of them at once, and there was only so much she could do stop them from spreading around her.

Pyrrha blocked a charging sword slash and bashed the soldier away from her, then knocked out two of his friends with a well-timed rocky projectile. She spun, barely dodging a spear thrust. Not losing momentum, she jumped over her attacker and elbowed him in the back, then kicked him away and hopped back, avoiding the rest.

There were many, almost too many for her to handle. She wasn't panicking, but this would require her to be very careful about every movement she made. One small mistake could meant the end for her and the whole village.

Just as she thought that, she felt heat on her back. Her eyes widened and she started to turn, only to see Ruby land behind her and spin her staff just in time to stop a fireball from hitting her.

Their eyes met, and both nodded. They stepped back, pressing their backs together, and spun slowly in place, deflecting attacks and taking out the soldiers closest to them.

Weiss joined the fight, freezing the rhinos in place to stop them from stomping around and potentially harming anyone. Her water also found many human targets.

Jaune's contribution was subtler, as he focused on knocking out any soldiers who his friends hadn't been too throughout with. He never lost his balance, not even once.

The battle ended in a matter of minutes, the soldiers all blacked out except for their officer, who was now kneeling on the ground, glaring furiously at Pyrrha. "You will regret this, you wretched girl! I'll make sure you pay for this insolence!"

"Yeah?" Pyrrha turned to him, throwing her shield.

He winced, turning his face aside and closing his eyes. Seconds passed with nothing happening. Hesitantly, he opened his eyes and nearly jumped to his feet. The shield was floating in front of him, almost touching his nose.

"I believe you'll be the one to regret this encounter, officer," Pyrrha said. She closed her fist and brought it down. The shield flew above the officer and bonked him in the head, knocking him out, then flew back to Pyrrha.

She caught it easily and fixed it on her back again, then turned to face her new friends, who were all looking at her slack-jawed. Pyrrha blinked, then blushed and ran a hand through her hair sheepishly.

"Sorry," she said. "I should have told you before, but I can also bend metal."

Ruby passed out.

* * *

"Is she better, dear?" Mrs. Nikos asked when Pyrrha exited the guestroom, fanning her face worriedly. "Oh, if something bad happened to the Avatar under our care…"

"She's fine, Mom," Pyrrha assured, smiling a bit. "Ruby was just… shocked, I guess. Weiss tells me she 'has an unhealthy obsession with all kinds of bending'."

"Well, she _is_ the Avatar…." Mrs. Nikos pointed out amusedly.

Pyrrha nodded. It did make a lot of sense when she thought about it. Although she suspected Ruby would be just as excited about bending if she wasn't the Avatar.

"So," her father spoke up. "Have you rethought matters?"

"What?" Pyrrha frowned confusedly.

"You haven't changed your mind?" Her mother tilted her head knowingly. "We very well know you want to go with your new friends."

Pyrrha looked away uncomfortably. She couldn't deny they were right, but that didn't mean much. Even if fighting alongside Ruby had been the greatest thing she had experienced in years, it did not change the truth of her situation.

"I can't. The village needs me," Pyrrha said. "Today was the prime example of that. What if I hadn't been here? Everyone would have been captured by the Fire Nation - or worse."

"True, but the fault wouldn't have been on you," her father said. "The truth is, everyone has grown dependent on you to defend us against the world. Too dependent. I think it's time everyone learns to look after themselves a little.

"But… I'm their protector," Pyrrha argued. "I can't just-"

"Not anymore, you aren't." He shook his head sternly. "We can't hold you hostage anymore. Let the town whine and say you're abandoning them. Mistral is not the place for you to be."

"But-"

"Sweetheart, your father and I have always known you were meant for more than protecting this place. From the moment you began to earthbend, before you could even walk…" Her mother smiled. "We knew your destiny was much grander than we could ever have imagined. And now it's here, lying on our guestroom bed."

Pyrrha bit her lip, her eyes watering. She hugged them both at once, then stepped back. "O-okay. I'll go. This… this is my destiny, and I will embrace it."

Her parents nodded, smiling at each other.

Pyrrha entered the guestroom quietly, looking at Ruby, resting against the bed's headboard, and Weiss and Jaune sitting beside her, alternating on who held a cold rag to their friend's forehead.

"Hey," Pyrrha said, stepping around the bed to look at Ruby. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah. Sorry about passing out." Ruby smiled lopsidedly. "You're a metalbender…"

"I suppose I am." Pyrrha chuckled. "Know what else I am?"

"What? A bird in disguise?" Ruby rubbed her nose tiredly. "Can you fly, on top of everything else?"

"Nope." Pyrrha winked. "I'm your earthbending teacher."

Ruby's eyes widened.

And then she passed out again.

Weiss groaned, while Jaune just shook his head in disapproval.

Pyrrha covered her mouth with her hands. "I'm so sorry…"


	26. The Ties That Bind

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Six: The Ties That Bind**

* * *

Ruby gulped, bouncing anxiously on the balls of her feet. As excited as she was about finally getting to learning earthbending, she couldn't deny she was also a little scared. Unlike waterbending, which she had done a few times before becoming Weiss' unofficial pupil, earthbending was an absolute unknown to her. What if she made a fool of herself - or worse, what if she couldn't earthbend at all?

Pyrrha had taken her a small way away from camp, to a plain spot by the side of the road, but Ruby was sure Weiss and Jaune could still see them very clearly. Another thing to be nervous about. She really didn't want to embarrass herself in front of her oldest friends _as well_ as her newest one.

"Relax, Ruby," Pyrrha said as she did some preliminary stretching. "You might get hurt, what with all that tension. With earthbending, you need to always pay attention to your body."

"O-okay. But I thought earthbending was all about tension?" Ruby asked. "I mean, whenever I see people earthbending, they're always stiff and guarded and all that stuff… You know, kinda like a rock?"

"It might look so, but a good earthbender knows how to be a rock without _behaving_ like a rock," Pyrrha said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "That analogy sounded better in my head. But how else to convey that feeling? Hmm…"

They shared a long moment of silence, Ruby standing there awkwardly while Pyrrha pondered the question from all angles. To be a rock, but not behave like a rock…

"Anyways!" Pyrrha cleared her throat. "Sorry, teaching someone is even trickier than I imagined. I suppose we should begin with some basic stances. Follow my example, and don't worry about messing up - I'll be right here to help you."

She assumed a classic earthbending pose which Ruby vaguely recognized, probably having seen it before in her travels. The nomad bit her lip, then mimicked as best she could.

Pyrrha relaxed, then started to walk around her, inspecting her closely. "Again, with the tension," she said. "Just breathe deeply. That'll help."

Ruby did as advised, and indeed, she felt her muscles relaxing and mind clearing a bit. It was a bit silly, considering she already knew this type of technique, being a master airbender, but she felt justified with how stressful new experiences like this could be.

"Good. Now, let me polish your stance a bit." Pyrrha stopped in front of her, laying a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Feet on the ground. Spread your legs. Shoulders high, arms low…"

Ruby followed her instructions quietly, though her attention was slipping away from the exercise. Something about Pyrrha's words was very distracting, and more than that… strangely distressing…?

"Perfect!" Pyrrha exclaimed. "Now you look like an earthbender."

Ruby froze, her eyes widening…

* * *

_Feet on the ground. Spread your legs. Shoulders high, arms low… Perfect! Now you look like an earthbender._

_I only wanted to bring out the true potential inside of you._

_Lay a finger on my sister, and you're done for!_

_It's my fault. My responsibility. I'm sorry, but I have to get them back. I have to._

_I understand. I do. But bringing that to light now, of all times, was just… cruel._

_She is the reason why, Avatar._

_**WELCOME BACK** _

* * *

Ruby gasped, falling towards the ground. Pyrrha caught her and swiftly brought her back to her feet, looking at her in fright. "Ruby? Are you okay?"

"I'm… I'm fine." Ruby shook her head lethargically. "Sorry! I don't know what happened."

"Maybe this isn't the best time for us to start your training," Pyrrha suggested guiltily. "All that tension… You must be so uncomfortable still. I shouldn't have pushed you."

"Pyrrha, it's not your fault. Seriously." Ruby smiled faintly. "I just need to lie down, I think."

Pyrrha tilted her head slightly, as if she didn't totally agree with her, but she didn't object. What Ruby didn't predict is that she would lift her up in her arms and carry her back to the camp, much to Weiss and Jaune's confusion.

"Uh, what's up?" Jaune asked. "I thought you two were going to begin the earthbending madness."

Pyrrha laid Ruby down on the grass, patted her in the head once, then stood up. "Ruby is tired. As a responsible teacher, I have decided it is best for her to rest until she is ready for her lessons!" she declared dutifully. "Are you good there on the ground, Ruby?"

"Uh, sure?" Ruby replied hesitantly.

"As a responsible teacher, I could bend the dirt in order to provide you with a better terrain to rest on." Pyrrha raised a finger. "I could also set up a tent for you, but I know you prefer to sleep in the open, and I very much respect that! You are my pupil, after all!"

"Uh, no, I'm good. Thanks anyway."

Pyrrha nodded, then sat down beside Jaune, who looked somewhere between awestruck and terrified. Weiss looked at Ruby, frowning worriedly.

"Are you sick, Ruby?" she asked. "We could hold off on traveling for a while. We still have a sizeable lead on the Fire Nation."

"No. Seriously, guys, I'm fine. It's just a little headache." Ruby turned around. "I'm gonna sleep. We can get going in the morning, like always."

Weiss shared a look with Jaune and Pyrrha, but ultimately, they let her be. Ruby closed her eyes, trying to fend off the uneasy feeling growing in the back of her head.

* * *

Yang closed the door of her room behind her, stepping barefooted into the dark hallway. She looked around to make sure nobody was nearby, then started to walk, keeping as quiet as possible.

She didn't know much about this place, having only been there for a few days, but that was enough time for her to find her way through its many hallways. After rescuing them from Cinder Fall, Qrow had taken her and her father south of Atlas, to an abandoned village, and there, an underground hideout.

She hadn't said anything about it, but during their journey, she had detected an unspoken tension between her father and Qrow. She first thought it was maybe because of Qrow leaving to rebel against the Fire Nation, or Taiyang doing just the contrary, but that suspicion quickly died off when she noticed they always stopped talking when she was nearby. Like they had something to hide, from her specifically.

Yang didn't like secrets, especially when it came to family. She was going to find out the truth, even if she had to beat it out of her elders… Gently, of course. Very gently.

Turning around a corner, Yang saw the light of a fireplace coming from the hideout's living room. She sneaked closer, keeping close to the wall and straining her ears to listen to the quiet voices on the other side of it.

"…I can't just _tell_ her," her father said. "With the war and us being banished, it's just too complicated. She's got enough trouble in her life as is, the last thing she needs is… You know."

"When is it not going to be complicated, Taiyang?" Qrow asked. "I get you have good intentions, but you're still wrong. Dead wrong. Telling her would be _good_ , for both of you."

"You don't get it. Qrow, you see the world through these lenses that make everything look… romantic and fantastical," Taiyang replied bitterly. "The truth needs to be stay a secret. _That_ is what is best for everybody involved."

"Oh, really? Everybody?" Qrow scoffed. "I bet Yang would love to hear that. I guess you're gonna keep her in the dark forever too, huh?"

Yang gasped, thrown by the sudden turn in the conversation. She thought they had been talking about her all along, but maybe that wasn't the case after all?

Shaking off her confusion, Yang clenched her fists and walked inside the room, tired of eavesdropping like a child. The conversation stopped suddenly as her father and uncle turned to look at her, sat opposite of each other in chairs in front of the fireplace.

"What the heck are you two talking about?" she asked, allowing some anger into her voice, just enough to get them to understand she wasn't kidding around. "Just what are you hiding from me?"

"Uh…" Taiyang raised his hands sheepishly. "Nothing…?"

"Oh, you're gonna get it now," Qrow said, joining his hands behind his head and leaning back in his chair.

Yang walked to her father, stared him down for a moment, then kicked him in the ankle. He yelped, raising his leg to grasp it, then looked up at her, pouting. "I didn't raise you to be this violent!"

"You kinda did, actually." Yang put her hands on her hips. "You also raised me to not keep secrets from family."

Taiyang looked at the fireplace, pursing his lips. His jokey facade had fallen now, revealing how uncomfortable he truly was with the situation. But that didn't placate Yang, and her uncle too.

"If you don't start talking, I will," Qrow warned, the look in his eyes indicating he meant every word.

Yang nodded, then sat beside her uncle. Together, they stared at Taiyang, until finally he sighed and turned his eyes back to them.

"Fine," he said. "But we're gonna do this properly. Start from the very beginning."

"And when is that?" Yang asked.

"When your parents met," Qrow said. "Actually, far before that."

"Oh, great. Love story between my parents," Yang groaned. "This is not going to be gross, right?"

Qrow smiled humorlessly. "Trust me, Firecracker, you'll soon be wishing it was _only_ gross."

* * *

Ruby opened her eyes to the vast blue of the sky all around her. She sat up and felt the terrain beneath her, realizing she was lying on clouds. Realizing what was happening, she stood up and turned around, and without surprise found Avatar Ozpin standing there, leaning on his cane, as always.

"Nice to see you again, Ruby."

Ruby bowed briefly. "Avatar Ozpin." She looked up at him. "Did you summon me here? I don't remember asking for help."

"You did, and you didn't," Ozpin said. "You needed guidance, and though you might never have thought to seek it from me… Here I am." His eyes twinkled. "We help each other like that."

Ruby nodded hesitantly. Man, being the Avatar was weird.

"So, how exactly can you help me?" she asked. "I was tired when I fell asleep. Had a headache. But I don't think that's Avatar territory."

"Sometimes the body reacts to the turmoil in the spirit in the most imperceptible of ways. Other times, it reacts like a canoe caught in the ocean during a thunderstorm," Ozpin said. "What do you think could be causing the turmoil in your spirit now, Ruby?"

Ruby crossed her arms and hummed, pondering his questions. She had been nervous about training with Pyrrha, but that wasn't that big of a deal. The Fire Nation forces were approaching, but she wasn't that scared of them, not yet at least. There was Weiss, but, well, she was always there, and Ruby was dealing with that just fine nowadays.

"…The visions, I guess," she said. "Back when we went through the Three Kings' Path, I was shown a lot of weird stuff. Apparently, it was – is, will be? - my future." She shook her head. "It sounds crazy, but I did see Pyrrha there, and she's with us now. So if that much was real…"

"I see." Ozpin tilted his head curiously. "What more?"

"There were some visions that were not as clear… They were more like flashes, I can only remember hearing some things…" Ruby snapped her fingers. "Just this morning, Pyrrha repeated one of them word by word when we were going to train! That was when I collapsed!"

Ozpin closed his eyes. Ruby took a step back, feeling a strange sensation course through her, not unlike what she felt when she went into the Avatar State, except lesser.

"Ah. Yes…" Ozpin opened his eyes. "I believe I've got a clue about what is bothering you, Ruby. Let's us find the root of the problem together."

He extended a hand. Ruby took it without a second's hesitation, and they faded away to somewhere else.

* * *

"Your mother and I have known each other for pretty much all our lives," Taiyang started. "As the child of one of the most powerful houses in the Fire Nation, I frequented the same circles as the royal family. Raven was a frequent sight, and nice company in otherwise boring parties when we were kids. But it took a while for us to actually become friends."

Yang leaned back, settling more comfortably in her chair. So far, this story did not sound half as terrible as she had expected. But this was only the beginning, of course.

"It took time, and _me_ …" Qrow pointed to himself. "…and another friend, but we ended up forming a pretty tight group. We were always getting trouble back then."

"No, _you_ were always getting into trouble, and we were the ones who had to fix everything afterwards," Taiyang corrected. "You almost burned the palace down one time."

"Oh, please. Like that could ever happen with so many firebenders around!" Qrow rolled his eyes.

"Boys, please, let's get back to the point," Yang said sternly. "So it was you two, Mom, and who's this other friend?"

"I've told you about her before. Her name was Summer," Taiyang said. "She was an ambassador from the Air Nomads, but she spent a lot of time around us back then."

"A very nice gal." Qrow nodded solemnly. "You would have liked her, Yang."

Taiyang threw him a look, then cleared his throat. Yang shook her head, wondering how two grown men could act like such boys.

"So, what's the point of telling me this?" she asked, exasperated. "You were teenagers. Cool. You had an Air Nomad friend. Also cool. And?"

"Well, we all had lots of fun, but eventually, as always happens in groups comprising of blooming teenagers…" Qrow put his hand on his chest and gasped dramatically. "Romance reared its beautiful, treacherous face!"

"Eew! Okay, that's the gross part." Yang shut her eyes. "Can we skip it?"

"Not entirely. You see, my sister had a thing for your father here, as you can imagine…" Qrow said. "Alas… so did Summer."

Yang blinked. She looked from Qrow to her father, noticing how quiet he had gotten all of a sudden.

"Okay," she said hesitantly. "What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is…" Qrow sighed. "One of those ladies' feelings was not unrequited. But it's not the one you expect."

* * *

They appeared in a hallway lit by torchlight. Banners with the insignia of the Fire Nation lined the wall. Ahead of them, another Ozpin walked, though he didn't look all that different from the one Ruby knew.

"Where are we?" Ruby asked, twisting her nose. " _When_ are we?"

"Vacuo, the Fire Nation capital. The royal castle, to be most precise," Ozpin said, recognizing the place immediately. "As for when… Hmm. This cannot be that long before my death. Let's follow him." He paused. "I mean, follow me. Yes, me."

Ruby smiled faintly, glad to see that even her past life was sometimes thrown off by their weird spirit powers.

They followed the younger Ozpin through the hallways of the castle, Ruby taking interest in their surroundings in the meanwhile. In her dreams, she had imagined this castle like a diabolical fortress, but it wasn't all that different from the palace in the North Pole or the sprawling structures of Atlas.

Eventually, the younger Ozpin stopped before a door and opened it. They entered a lavish bedroom. On the floor, a young child played with some lettered squares, arranging short words. There was something oddly familiar about her.

"Who's that?" Ruby asked, watching the young Ozpin crouch in front of the kid.

"That's the princess Yang Branwen," Ozpin said. "Yes, I remember this quite clearly now."

"That's Yang?" Ruby got on the tip of her toes, holding back a squeal. "She's so _cute_! No wonder she didn't have the heart to hurt me in the end!"

The door opened again, and the Fire Lord stepped in. Ruby screamed and jumped away from her path, taking out her staff and swinging it at her, only for it to pass through her.

"Calm down, Ruby," Ozpin chuckled. "It's just a memory."

"Uh, yeah. I know. I just got a really bad cramp, is all," Ruby said sheepishly.

Raven stepped around Ozpin and baby Yang, sending a scalding look at the Avatar. "Ozpin. What are you doing in my child's room?"

"I was going to talk to you, but I was told you were busy, so I came to pay the princess a visit." The young Ozpin smiled. "She is my princess too, after all. I pride myself in my roots."

He extended a hand, and Yang ran the tips of her fingers along his palms, giggling softly. Suddenly, Raven bent down and lifted her up, then put her down on her bed. The Fire Lord looked at her child, and for an instant, Ruby could swear she saw contempt in her eyes.

"Alright. You had your visit," Raven said, walking out of the room, dragging the Avatar with her. "Now, what was it that you wished to talk about?"

The younger Ozpin frowned, looking deep into her eyes. "Raven, are you feeling well?" he asked. "You look worn out. Unbalanced even, I would dare say.."

"And? It comes with being the Fire Lord," she replied immediately.

"Your father rarely had this look," he said. "Until a couple weeks ago, you were the picture of serenity. Since then…"

Raven turned around and started to walk away. The younger Ozpin went after her, seemingly unwilling to let matters go.

"Raven, listen to me. This stress is not good for you," he said. "Perhaps you should take some time off. Go offshore, no business attached. How long has it been since you saw Summer?"

Raven spun around suddenly, her eyes burning red. "I would be happy if I never had to see that harlot ever again!" She breathed deeply, then turned around and walked away for good.

Ruby lowered her head, fists trembling at her sides. She really wished the Fire Lord wasn't untouchable right now.

"Hold your judgement, Ruby," Ozpin said softly. "She used to be a wonderful woman. People change. Sometimes they are forced to."

"Yeah, well. I'm all for forgiveness and giving people the benefit of the doubt…" Ruby looked away. "But she killed my Mom."

Ozpin didn't give that an answer.

"We're on the right track. In fact, I might already have this solved…" he said. "But let me take you through the rest of this journey. You need to see for yourself."

* * *

Yang stared at her father, wondering what was going on inside his head while his eyes fled hers. He was silent, but as she was no longer a child, that spoke volumes to her. She knew what she was hearing, what was coming, but she couldn't accept it. Not yet.

"Okay. So…" she said slowly, her voice becoming very small. "You and Summer were… together?"

Taiyang's shoulders dropped, and finally, he seemed to find the strength to face her again. "Yes. For a few years," he said. "We were young. A little older than you, but still just as airheaded and naive."

"Hey." Yang smiled, though it was difficult to keep it up for long.

"My sister was not so happy she wasn't the one to catch Tai's attention. We were all still friends, of course, but she wasn't a graceful loser. Fair to say she still isn't," Qrow said. "Summer was lucky she wasn't a firebender, or else Raven would have challenged her to an Agni Kai."

"She did try once. Summer changed the rules to a card game competition and won… barely." Taiyang frowned. "They really did treat me like a piece of meat, now that I think about it."

"Oh, and you were _so upset_ about it, the poor victim." Qrow rolled his eyes.

Yang stood up and turned around, taking a deep breath. Taiyang looked at Qrow, and the rebel nodded in understanding.

"Raven never tried to tear Summer and your father apart, though," Qrow said. "When she inevitably did, it wasn't by any decision of hers. She made it rather clear it was never her plan for things to go as they did, and as big of a critic of hers that I am, I have to admit she was honest."

"When your grandfather died, the title of Fire Lord passed down to your mother," Taiyang continued. "But Raven was young, and she had no heir. Should anything have happened to her, Qrow would have been the only remaining person with a legitimate claim to the throne. And that is not a secure enough state for any country to be in."

"So she needed to get an heir fast." Yang turned around. "And she chose you to be her husband."

"Her councilors chose for her. She tried to argue, but she wasn't the woman she is today," Qrow said. "The decision was set, and there wasn't anything any of us could do about it but accept it."

Yang looked at her father, a strange calm falling upon her. Maybe she should be feeling weird about hearing all this, but it was difficult to feel anything but sympathy for everyone involved in the story.

"Sorry, Dad," she said. "I guess you had to break it off with Summer, then?"

"Yeah. She went away for a while. Her visits became more infrequent." Taiyang leaned towards her. "Yang, I need you to understand that, while it was an arranged marriage, I still loved your mother. Maybe not in the way she wanted, but I did love her."

"It's true. He was always there for her." Qrow scoffed. "Most of the time, anyway."

Yang approached her father, stopping beside his chair. She looked down at him and crossed her arms. "You didn't really break it off, did you?"

* * *

The scenery slowly took form around them, a vast room with many of the same decorations as before. There was a throne, and upon it sat Fire Lord Raven, looking even younger than before, holding baby Yang in her arms. She had a genuine smile on her face, which Ruby couldn't help but find disturbing.

To the right of the throne stood Ozpin, and to the left, Taiyang Xiao Long. Ruby hummed, looking him up and down. It was weird seeing him so young. She had always thought he had this experienced and weathered air about him, but she supposed that would come with time.

"When's this?" Ruby asked. "Oh, I guess that's a dumb question. Yang's just a baby now."

"Yes, she cannot be a month old yet," her Ozpin confirmed. "She was big news during these times. The new heir to the Burning Throne. People from all around the world came to see her. And that is why I brought you here."

The doors of the throne room opened, and a woman walked in with quick, noiseless steps. Her features were hidden by a red cowl, but Ruby's heart raced nonetheless. She knew who it was at once.

"Hey, guys! Long time no see, huh?" Summer pulled down her cowl and smiled, stopping before the throne. Her silver eyes wandered over the three, stopping at Ozpin. "Avatar Ozpin!" She bowed. "It's always an honor to be in your presence."

He bowed in return. "And it's always wonderful to see how much my favorite airbender ambassador has grown."

"Yes, yes, it's always the same with you two," Raven raised an eyebrow. "Go on with the reverence. It's not like we've all known Ozpin since we were children."

"Now, now, are you feeling jealous, _Fire Lord_?" Summer put her hands on her hips. "Do you want me to bow to you too?"

"Of course not, you goofball." Raven got up and handed Yang over to Taiyang, then spread her arms welcomingly. "Come here."

Summer laughed lightly and hugged her. Ruby's eyes widened, and she looked from the embracing women to her Ozpin. She truly didn't know to feel about this scene – it was something she never would have imagined, not even in her wildest dreams.

"You act surprised, but your mother and Fire Lord Raven were always great friends," Ozpin said. "Some members of the Fire Nation nobility used to say they might even be _too_ close, that it wasn't good for the nation for Raven to be so emotionally attached to a foreigner like Summer."

"But… but…" Ruby mumbled. "Fire Lord! Evil! Very, very evil!"

"Like I said… people change."

Summer and Raven parted, and the airbender turned to looked at Taiyang. She flashed him a smile, then looked down at Yang.

"Oh. My. Gosh," she said breathlessly. "She's so _cute_! I want to pinch her! I-I want to spin her around with her! Raven, please, please, please let me hold her?"

The Fire Lord chuckled, then nodded, giving her go-ahead. As soon as Yang was in Summer's arms, she went spinning away, giggling uncontrollably.

"Jeez. She _really_ likes children," Taiyang noted, sounding more afraid than impressed.

"Guess I saved you from that fate, huh?" Raven raised an eyebrow. "You should probably make sure she doesn't break our child."

"Good thinking," Taiyang said, then walked towards the still spinning Summer. "Summer! Don't hold Yang like that, her head's gonna fly off!"

Raven smiled, leaning on the arm of her throne to watch as her husband tried to protect the baby as best he could against such the force of nature that was Summer. Slowly, however, her smile faded, and lines of worry appeared on her face.

"Are you worried, Raven?" the younger Ozpin asked quietly beside her.

"Worried? I cannot say," she said. "I wonder sometimes, if they still be bitter after so many years. If I am failing to see how my husband and my best friend are hurting. Ozpin, am I blinded by my own happiness?"

"No. They are not bitter, nor they are hurting," Ozpin replied surely. "Their spirits couldn't be more tranquil."

"Well, then," Raven sighed. "I concede to your Avatar wisdom."

Ruby turned to her Ozpin, formulating a question inside her head. Before she could finish, however, he raised a hand and nodded knowingly. He knew the question already.

Now came the answer.

* * *

"I did," Taiyang said. "Soon as I heard the news, I went to talk to Summer. We discussed things. It was very clear what had to happen, so we decided not to resist it and split up." He paused. "The commitment just… wasn't very effective."

"But thank heavens you tried, right?" Qrow scoffed. "Because that makes everything so much better! You _tried_."

"I never said I wasn't wrong, Qrow, you don't have to attack me!" Taiyang snapped, sitting forward in his chair. "You said it yourself - I was there for Raven. I did everything I could to support her, to be the husband she needed! I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to be more than that, but that's just the reality of how things went!"

"Yes, it was all very painful for you!" Qrow said, his words dripping with sarcasm. "How difficult it must have been to share the Fire Lord's bed, to bask in all the privileges, and then go behind her back with her best friend! Oh, woe is Taiyang!"

"You know what, Qrow? You're right." Taiyang smiled condescendingly. "I was _so terrible_ to your sister, while you were so supportive with the whole deserting your country and declaring her humanity's number one enemy. I should have been more like you."

"That's some precious hypocrisy right there. Remind me what you are doing nowadays?"

"I'm _protecting_ my daughter."

"Oh, yeah? Which one of them?"

" _Both_ , you imbecile!"

"Yes, and you've done _so much_. Where would we be if it weren't for the enlightening guidance of Taiyang Xiao-"

Yang stomped on the floor. Fire erupted out of the fireplace, lighting up the room and throwing embers everywhere.

The two men turned to look at her, dead silent.

"…You have another daughter?"

* * *

The moon was hidden behind a cluster of clouds, its outline barely visible through them. There were no stars in the sky. The air felt heavy somehow, heated, charged with emotion, even to Ruby, who physically shouldn't be feeling any of that.

Her mother was leaning on the guardrail on top of the wall, looking down at an empty courtyard. For a moment, Ruby thought she was facing a mirror, but no, she was only younger than Ruby could have ever witnessed under normal circumstances.

Avatar Ozpin walked to her, his appearance foretold by the beating of his cane against the ground. He stopped before her and leaned on the guardrail too, smiling softly.

"Pondering the news, Miss Summer?"

"I guess," she said, shifting uneasily. "You don't have to bother talking to me. I'm fine, swear."

"There's no shame in admitting how you truly feel," Ozpin said. "My airbending teacher once shared with me a piece of wisdom that, to this day, I still think about. What is a tornado, if not the wind succumbing to the turmoil it has endured for days? And how does a tornado stop-"

"-if not by releasing said turmoil, or else it spin on itself forever?" Summer completed. "You know that doesn't make any sense, right? Tornadoes happen when hot air meets with cold air and then everything goes _kablooey!_ and then _oops_ , _there goes my house!_ "

"The saying is not meant to be scientifically accurate," Ozpin chuckled. "It's meant to make you reflect."

"Avatar Ozpin, I promise you I've released all my turmoil already. I'm fine," Summer said. "I talked with Taiyang, and Raven. I know why they're going to marry, and I'm not going to stop them." She paused. "It hurts, yeah. But there will be other people in the future."

"Of course." The Avatar nodded. "But then why are you here?"

"Tai made me a promise." Summer smirked. "Well, more like I _forced_ him to make me a promise… He'll be here soon."

"Alright. I won't bother you, then," Ozpin bowed. "Safe travels, Summer."

He turned and walked away. Ruby braced herself, preparing to be whisked away to another memory, but it never happened, even after he was gone from her sight. Ruby looked around, surprised to see even her Ozpin wasn't with her. How was she here, then? This wasn't a memory of hers. Something weird was going on.

"Yes!" Summer whispered excitedly, vaulting over the wall. Ruby followed quickly, landing on the courtyard below.

Her mother walked in front of her, disappearing under the shadows of a great tree. Ruby watched from a distance, seeing the vague outline of another person moving there too.

She heard a male voice, familiar yet strange, whisper from the dark. "I'm sorry. Things shouldn't have to be this way."

"It's fine. I'm… coming to terms with it," her mother whispered back. "Aren't you?"

"Yeah. Slowly. But I don't want to lose you. You'll still be around, right?"

"As often as I can."

"Good. Raven will be happy too."

"I'm… I'm sorry. It was selfish of me to ask you for this. It's only making it more painful."

"Hey. I agreed to this, okay? It's something we both need. One last time, right?"

"Yeah…"

The clouds parted, and Ruby saw her mother holding Taiyang's hands, her head resting against his chest. She looked up, meeting his eyes, and smiled.

"One last time, under the moonlight."

* * *

_Yang pushed her back with her arm, coming to stand before her protectively. Ruby flinched, feeling the heat irradiating from her, washing over her face almost painfully._

_"Lay a finger on my sister, and you're done for!"_

* * *

Suddenly, she was standing in the clouds again, with Ozpin standing before her.

"Do you understand now?"

Ruby rubbed her eyes. She took a deep breath, then shook her head. "My father… is Taiyang Xiao Long, which means…" she said slowly. "Yang is my sister."

"Indeed. You knew, yet you didn't knew."

"… _What_?" Ruby looked at him in bewilderment.

"Ah. It's… complicated, as it always is with us." Ozpin bowed his head apologetically. "Your spirit knew, because I knew. But your mind, naturally, did not know. With the visions of the future bringing you closer to the truth, the two came into contact… Hence, turmoil."

"Hence, headaches and weird dreams."

Ozpin nodded. Ruby huffed, lying down on the clouds. She looked up at the blue sky, rubbing her forehead tiredly.

"Yang is my sister. Her dad is _my_ dad…" Her eyes widened. "Oh, no, does that make the Fire Lord my step-mother?!"

"You can choose to look at it that way, I suppose." Ozpin sat down beside her. "But perhaps it would be best for you to leave those questions for later. You've had enough revelations for one night."

Ruby hummed in agreement. She closed her eyes, and after a few seconds, the clouds gave way beneath her, and she drifted off into stranger, yet more calming dreams…

* * *

The room was silent for minutes. Taiyang's eyes didn't leave the floor. Qrow tapped the arm of his chair anxiously, betraying his otherwise serene demeanor. Yang stood still, looking at the fireplace.

Then suddenly, she stepped back and started laughing. Loud, uncontrollable, violent laughter that took her breath away and made her weak at the knees. Qrow stared at her as if she had gone mad, while her father squirmed uncomfortably in his seat.

"A-alright… I get it. I get it. You don't need to say it," Yang said, slowly recovering. "The sister which you've been keeping a secret from me – as well as your cheating on my mother – all this time, is none other than…" She stood up straight, losing all semblance of the lightness she had been displaying but a second ago. "The Avatar herself."

"…Yes," Taiyang said, not looking at her.

Yang turned around and punched the air, unleashing a barrage of fire that hit the wall and bounced back, spraying embers over them. "You knew she was my sister all this time, while I chased her all around the world, wanting to capture her and bring her to the Fire Lord, which would have ruined her life!, but still…" She spun to face him again. " _You kept it a secret?!_ "

Taiyang opened and closed his mouth, fishing for a decent answer. "It was to protect you."

"Excuse me, _what_? How did that secret protect me from _anything_?" she asked. "Stop lying. That's all you do! You lie, you do things you know are wrong and then you lie to make yourself feel better! I bet you even believe your own lies!"

He slumped in his chair, not able to meet her eyes. Qrow opened his mouth to talk, but before he could, Yang whipped around, pointing a finger at him.

"And you! You're no better than him!" she exclaimed. "You turned your back on your family, on your whole country, to run around and act like you're such a mighty, feared rebel, when everything you've done has actually amounted to _nothing_! The Fire Nation is coming, it's destroying everything in its path, and here you are hiding like a coward!"

"Now that is just unfair," Qrow said. "You don't have a clue about the work I've done, the lives I've saved."

"Yeah? And whose fault is that?" Yang glared at him. "You act all high and mighty, like you're better than my father, but you kept me in the dark just as long as he did. Hell, I bet you have hundreds more secrets you're keeping from me."

Qrow looked away, for once unable to find a sharp retort. Yang shook her head in disappointment, then turned around and walked out of the room. She stopped in the doorway and looked over her shoulder.

"I'm leaving. Don't look for me," she said. "You can enjoy being terrible people together, how about that?"

She left, slamming the door behind her. The flames in the fireplace fizzled out, leaving them in darkness.

* * *

Ruby opened her eyes. The night wasn't over. Everyone was sleeping in their tents. Someone had covered her with her cloak, leaving her warm in the chilly air. She looked up.

There were no stars in the sky, the clouds parting to reveal the moon. She gazed at its silver surface, her thoughts in another place, another time lingering - familiar faces with newfound meanings.

Sleep didn't come to her again until dawn, but she didn't mind. Ruby fell into a warm slumber with a smile on her lips.

* * *

Yang's boot fell upon a puddle, splashing water all over her leg. She grunted in annoyance, looking down to see if there was any nasty dirt along with it.

She saw her own reflection in the shallow water and swiped away the tears, only to shudder at the eyes that stared back at her. Violet, with a sparking red in its depths. Stuck in-between, and there couldn't be a more painful feeling than that.

Yang raised her head and looked at the east horizon, from whence the Fire Nation's invasion forces came. She had come to many answers she didn't know she wanted today. Somewhere out there, there were more yet to be found – with the person who most owed her.

"Alright, then," Yang muttered. "Let's see what you have to say for yourself."


	27. In the Land of War

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Seven: In the Land of War**

* * *

The boy turned around the corner, running as fast as his feet would allow him. The bag of apples on his arms was weighting him down, but the footsteps behind him and the smell of ashes kept him going, almost tripping over his own feet.

"Stop running, kid! You're only making it harder on yourself and your mother!" the bandit screamed behind him, and he saw the shadow of his axe slithering closer on the ground.

He turned again, disappearing behind a house, and from there he looked forward and saw the trees at the outskirts of town. His salvation! He knew the woods like the back of his hand. There was no chance the bandit could catch him there.

His hope was shattered almost instantly, his toes clashing against an uneven slab on the ground. Yelling in pain, he fell down and crashed hard against the stones. The apples went rolling everywhere.

Sniffing, he curled up into a ball and closed his eyes, resigning himself to his fate.

"Got you now, boy! You're gonna sing for me, you-"

The boy heard the axe fall on the ground, then a loud smack followed by a pained grunt.

"You filthy beast… Who do you think you are?! I'm gonna-"

 _Thump_.

Silence.

The boy refused to move or even open his eyes, too afraid of discovering what was so powerful that it defeated the bandit so easily. He heard faint steps approach him, then suddenly, he was being lifted off the ground, nestled in someone's arms.

"It's okay," a soft voice said. "You can open your eyes now."

He did, and saw something unexpected. A girl, almost an adult, with amber eyes and hair that blended in with the night. From the top of her head sprouted two cat ears. He had seen people like her before, travelers that passed by his town, but his mother always said he shouldn't go near them, or even look at them directly if he could help it.

What a shame. He thought she looked very pretty.

"Are y-you going to hurt me…?" he asked.

"I promise I won't," she replied immediately, a sad smile gracing her lips. "You have no reason to be scared anymore. Your mom's also okay. I'll take you back to her, if you want."

"O-okay…"

She turned and started to walk back towards the town. The boy stuck his neck out, looking at the fallen bandit on the ground.

"Did you…?" The question died on his lips. The man wasn't even twitching.

"I knocked him out. He and all his buddies," she said. "Don't worry about them. How about you tell me your name instead?"

He looked away guiltily. "I'm not supposed to."

"Ah. Yeah, I guess you aren't." She nodded. "That's fine. Do you wanna know my name, then? I'm a grown-up, so I can tell whoever I want."

He frowned, wondering if she was pulling his leg or something. Maybe she was just talking to him so he would lower his guard, and then she would spring a trap on him. But he wanted to know _so much_ …

He knew what his mother would say to him. She repeated every time she thought he was asking too many questions or getting himself into some new kind of trouble, which was pretty much every day. It never worked to stop him, of course.

 _Curiosity killed the cat_ …

* * *

Blake barely managed to put the boy on his feet before his mother embraced him, pressing him to herself like he was about to fade from existence. He hugged her back just as fiercely, his cries echoing throughout the ruined town.

Lowering her head respectfully, Blake turned and walked away from them, approaching one of the unconscious bandits she'd rescued the woman from. She turned him on his back with her foot and crouched down, inspecting him closely. There were no symbols or insignias on his clothes and body.

Blake shook her head in disgust. Common bandits taking advantage of the Fire Nation invasion to pillage unguarded villages, catching stragglers or stubborn people who refused to leave their homes. This wasn't the first time she had come across this type of scum, but that didn't make it any less infuriating.

She stood back up and looked around. The bandits had burned down three houses in the village before she got there, probably trying to draw out anyone hiding in them. Now only ashes remained. Even the Fire Nation wouldn't have stooped that low.

"You should get going soon," she said, turning back to the mother and kid. "If you're fast enough, you might catch up to other people on the road. You'll be safer in a group. But don't go to Atlas – word is, the army won't be making a stand there."

The woman looked up at her, and though she looked grateful, Blake could still detect the slightest distrust and contempt in the depths of her eyes. Blake pretended not to notice, which wasn't hard at all – she'd had years of practice.

"Thank you," the woman muttered, not looking Blake in the face, and took her son's hand. She turned and started walking away, but the boy looked back over his shoulder and planted his feet on the ground, grinding to a halt.

"What about her, mommy?" he whispered. "Shouldn't she be coming too? What about the bad men?"

"She can take care of herself, son," his mother said, pushing him forward gently. "Get walking. You heard her. We need to get out of here fast."

The boy pouted, but obeyed her nonetheless. Blake flashed him a little smile, then watched as the two left the town, until they were just two blurry silhouettes on the horizon.

Sighing, Blake took out her map from her pocket and opened it. She had covered a lot of distance this last week, but she would need to move even faster if she wanted to get to her destination before the Fire Nation. The worst part was it wasn't even certain she would find who she was looking for there. She might need to visit the neighboring villages too, which would most likely get her in a world of trouble.

It was good she had been born used to that.

* * *

The bandits weren't the only side-effect of the war. They weren't even the worst. That honor belonged to the Grimm.

The further east Blake traveled, the more of them she saw. Packs of Beowolves, Boarbatusks and Ursai. She even spotted a few gigantic King Taijitu and one Nevermore flying high in the sky. She had managed to avoid confrontation with all of them so far.

Her luck ran out two days after the encounter at the village. She had been following the road, knowing that the farther she was from the wilderness, the least likely were the chances of being ambushed by Grimm. Unfortunately, that meant being alone in the middle of a featureless plain. As agile as she was, even Blake couldn't elude Grimm in such conditions.

It was a mixed pack, three Beowolves being led by a pair of Ursai. The wolves went first, running on all fours towards her. Blake unsheathed her sword and held it in front of her, bidding her time as they closed in on her.

When it was close enough, one of the Grimm leaped off the ground, raising a claw to swipe at her head. Blake stepped forward and swung her sword, cleaving the beast in half. She bent down and rolled on the ground, dodging the next one's attack, then jumped back to her feet and spun around, hilting her blade on the wolf's back.

The last Beowolf whimpered in fear, running back and letting the Ursai take her on instead. The bears were smarter, attacking her at the same time. Blake glided back on the tips of her feet, barely avoiding their sharp claws. She swung her sword upwards, but it was an awkward attack that the targeted Ursa simply brushed aside with its armored paw.

The other Ursa burst forward suddenly, aiming a punch directly at her chest. Blake blocked with the side of her blade, gritting her teeth as her whole body shook. It was a wonder her weapon hadn't shattered under the blow.

The Grimm continued to advance on her, their attacks becoming quicker the more she dodged. Blake ceased trying to counter-attack, knowing that one more failed attempt would most likely result in her doom. She needed to bide her time and take advantage of the Ursai's greater, but senseless strength.

She came to a sudden halt, ducking under a slash, then dashed forward, slipping between the two bears. She ran a little further, then turned while they were still catching up to her trickery. Her hand moving so fast it was almost a blur, Blake took her ribbon from her pocket and lashed it at one of the Grimm. The sturdy fabric wrapped around its ankle, and she pulled back with all her might.

The Ursa fell on its face, and the other one jumped back, startled. Blake ran towards the felled bear and stepped on it, then buried her blade on the back of its neck. She landed back on the ground as the body below her turned to smoke. Not letting the other Ursa recover from the surprise, she turned towards it and made a deft stroke, piercing the monster under the chin.

Smirking, Blake pulled her sword. Suddenly, something heavy clashed against her back, and she fell to the ground. She had forgotten about the last Beowolf, and now it was upon her, growling menacingly. It raised its head and opened its mouth, displaying its sharp fangs, then brought it down to bite at her shoulder.

Blake raised her sword, bracing it horizontally with her free hand. The Grimm kept going, diving headfirst into the sharp blade, and promptly turned to smoke. Blake coughed, dropping her sword and waving the vile substance away from her face.

War was hell.

* * *

It took her one day more to arrive at the village, but by the time she got there, it was too late. Observing from the top of a hill, she could spot a squadron of Fire Nation soldiers making rounds there.

Blake sat down to avoid being seen and rubbed her forehead in frustration. The best move right now was to turn and run back west to safer pastures. But she couldn't do that, not after she had come all this way.

She looked up at the sky. The sun would be setting soon. If she waited until it was night, she would have a chance of sneaking by the soldiers unnoticed. It was a slim chance… but a chance nonetheless.

* * *

"How long do we need to wait, again?"

"As long as I see fit, soldier. Why, you getting tired?"

"Frankly, sir… yes."

"Well, you can direct your complaints to the Fire Lord. Now scram. Go check up on the perimeter again."

The soldier grunted under his breath, but turned around anyway, leaving his commander and companions sitting cozily around the campfire at the center of the village. He held his spear more firmly and headed away from them.

He wouldn't be so frustrated by his commander's orders if he could only see the sense in them. What was the point of holding on to a deserted village? It wasn't as if some bandit group was going to take it for themselves. And even if that happened, the army would deal with them without a problem when they passed by.

Oh, well. Orders were orders. Right now, he should be more worried about any Grimm straying too close to the group. He walked at a slow pace towards the outside of the village, his eyes darting to every shadow. Just the sight of a red eye, and he would go on the offensive immediately.

He reached the outer limit of the village, looked at the road ahead, then nodded to himself and turned around to head back to the campfire. Before he could take a step, however, he heard a whipping noise and felt a sting on his wrist. He looked down and saw a black fabric wrapped around his arm. He had no time to register that, as in the next second he was being dragged to the darkness between two houses.

Blake caught the soldier, covering his mouth with one hand, while grabbing his falling spear with the other. She let go of him and spun, smacking him in the back of the head with the blunt end of the weapon, knocking him out before he'd even hit the ground.

She laid down the spear gently, then poked her head out of the alley and looked at the faraway soldiers around the campfire. It seemed like they hadn't seen nor heard the incident. The inn, her destination, was just to the right of them. She would have approached from that angle, but they had a pair of soldiers standing guard at all times there.

Retreating a little, she looked around her, being able to see in the darkness because of her faunus eyesight. The wall of the house on her left had some bricks sticking out slightly. She jumped and grabbed onto one of them, pulled herself up to the next, then repeated the action and used a last boost to climb onto the roof.

Crouching low, Blake reached for the edge of the roof, then jumped to the next house over. She landed softly, producing only the slightest noises. She was fortunate the moon wasn't full today, as it made it much harder for her to be spotted against the night sky.

She went from house to house, carefully circling around the resting soldiers until she was on the roof of the inn. She went to the edge at the back, looked around to make sure there were no sentries nearby, then dropped down, grabbing onto a windowsill on the way down. She reached up to open the window, then climbed inside.

Once her feet hit the floor, Blake stood still, straining her ears. As far as she could tell, the inn was empty, but it didn't hurt to be quiet still. Keeping a careful balance of being stealthy and fast, Blake walked through the hallway to the stairs, descending the steps to the ground floor. She inspected the entrance room of the inn for a moment, then made a beeline for the counter at the back, straying clear of any windows.

The trapdoor was still there even after so many years, hidden beneath the rug behind the counter. She lifted the rug and put it aside, then opened the trapdoor and slipped in, falling briefly until her feet hit a rocky surface.

The hideout was empty.

Blake dug her fingernails into her palms, barely holding back a string of curses. She had seen this coming, but had kept going anyway. How could she have been so foolish?

She shook her head. There would be plenty of time to berate herself later, but first she needed to get herself out of this precarious situation. If she moved fast enough, she could maybe make it out of the village before the soldiers noticed something was wrong.

She turned to jump and climb back to the inn, but as she did, something caught her attention in the corner of her vision. A piece of paper left on the floor, the weight of a small rock keeping it in place. Blake walked to it and picked it up.

_Blake. I wish I didn't have to write this letter, but I know you too well, and even after all these years, I doubt you've changed all that much. You're still too stubborn for your own good, right?_

_Now that you've reached the hideout and discovered I'm not there anymore, you're probably wondering where I've gone. Soon as I heard about the invasion, I took everyone else who'd come to live here and booked it to Vale. We'll be safe there, or at least safer than we'd be otherwise._

_The truth is, though, I was planning on going there even before the invasion. There's word of some kind of faunus rebellion on the capital. If that's true, I want to be there to help. I'd really like it if you went too. Give it some thought, okay?_

_I miss you. Hope you've cooled off about me. But, then again, you are stubborn._

_Your one friend,_

_Adam_

Blake sighed. She rolled up the paper and put it in her pocket. Why was she surprised? Adam was always going on missions of justice. At least he wasn't taking on the Fire Nation this time.

Vale… There were worse places on Remnants. And with Atlas soon to fall to the Fire Nation, alternative options were few. But she wasn't sure she wanted to see Adam again. The only reason she had gone looking for him in the first place was to make sure he was safe.

"He's what?!" Blake froze, hearing one of the soldiers screaming outside of the inn. "What do you mean he's out cold?!"

"I don't know, sir! He just is!"

"There's someone around here! Search everywhere!"

Leaving her plans for later, Blake rushed to the trapdoor and climbed up, just in time to hear the door of the inn open. She ducked behind the counter. Someone climbed up the stairs in a hurry, but another soldier stayed on the ground floor. Blake waited anxiously, seeing his shadow growing bigger on the wall as he approached.

Suddenly, she stood up and jumped over the counter, kicking the soldier in the chest before landing. He slammed against a wall, losing his breath and spear. Not waiting for him to recover, Blake bolted out the inn through the still-open door.

"It's a faunus!" the soldier screamed behind her. "The inn! Get her!"

Blake ran to the right, choosing a direction at random. A soldier put himself in her path, swinging an axe, but Blake slid under it and his legs, then got up and put on another burst of speed. A spear flew over her shoulder, scraping by her ear, and fell on the ground.

Just as she thought she would make it out of the village, a wall of fire rose in front of her, forcing her to stop. Blake turned around. The squadron's commander was walking towards her, his fists aflame. The other soldiers were behind him, a good dozen and all armed. Some of them might even be firebenders too, as far as she knew.

"You're cornered now, beast," the commander said. "Give up, and I'll make your death quick and painless!"

Blake drew her sword. "You can try."

"I'll make you fight to your last breath, then." The commander pointed at her. "Take your sweet time, boys!"

The soldiers came running at her, raising their lances and swords high. Blake stepped towards the first one, parrying his blade, then kicked him away. "I'm warning you, back off!"

She looked to the house to her right and ran to it, jumping and kicking against the wall, reaching for the rooftop. A fireball arced through the air, singeing the tip of her fingers. Blake yelled and fell down, crashing hard on the ground.

"Hah!" the commander laughed. "You're a joy to watch squirm!"

A soldier appeared above her, bringing down a spear. Blake rolled to the side, wincing as the weapon hit the ground right where her head had been. Thinking fast, she took out her ribbon and whipped it at the man, hitting him right in the eye. He stumbled back, screaming in pain.

Blake stood up, grabbed her sword from the ground, and backed away slowly. It was clear the soldiers were just toying with her. As soon as they decided to take her seriously, she was done for.

The flames were licking at her back. She had only one option. It would hurt, but better that than the alternative. Blake braced herself, the heat intensifying behind her…

"Alright, what the hell is going on here?"

Suddenly, the flames parted behind her. A girl her age stepped past her. She had long blonde hair and violet eyes, and though she wore a top and short skirt of the traditional Earth Kingdom colors, it was clear to Blake that she wasn't native.

"Don't you have any semblance of honor?" she asked furiously. "Attacking this girl, toying with her… You are nothing but bullies!"

"Watch your tongue!" the commander shouted. "We are proud members of the Fire Nation army!"

"Yes, I know that. Do you have a hearing impediment?" The girl rolled her eyes. "Just back off. _Now_."

The commander swung his arm, launching a spiraling fire towards them. The blond stepped in front of Blake and raised a hand, and the flames stopped and gathered before her palm, fusing into a bright, crackling sphere.

A wave of gasps came from the soldiers, but none was more startled than the commander himself. The fire on his hands faded, and his face went pale white.

"Yep. You just realized how badly you screwed up. Sorry, bud." The girl turned her hand and closed it, dispersing the ball of fire. "This will be my kindness to you: go running back to the Fire Lord, and tell her she's got someone with lots of questions coming her way. This is an order from your princess. Got it?"

Blake watched tensely, expecting the commander to attack again even more angrily, but he turned around and took off, only his pride keeping him from a full-blown sprint. His subordinates followed shortly, the clinging of their armor ringing throughout the village.

Only once they were gone did Blake look at her savior again. She looked… familiar. But how? She was certain she would remember a girl like her.

"Hey. Sorry for stepping in, but you needed help," the firebender said, turning to face her. "You're Blake, right?"

"Yes." Blake frowned. "Have we met before…?"

"Kinda. You were the one saving me back then, though." The girl shrugged. "I used to go by Grimm Lady. But you can call me Yang."

* * *

Blake peered at Yang over the campfire, registering her last words in silence. She didn't quite know how to feel in her presence now, but the fact that Yang had saved her helped her image a lot. But Blake had a bad history with trusting people so easily…

"You can leave now. I can tell from your face that you want to," Yang said quietly, looking at her fingernails.

"That's not what I was thinking." Blake shook her head. "Sorry. It's not every day you're saved by the princess. of the Fire Nation. It's very… confusing."

"I can imagine." Yang smirked. "You must have been running from my people all your life."

"Yes. But that's not the only people I have to run from."

Yang looked up, her eyes lingering on her cat ears, but she swiftly took them away.

"It's okay to look at them," Blake said. "I won't be offended."

"Sorry. We, uh… don't have a lot of faunus where I'm from," Yang said. "The ones I knew were all servants, so, yeah…"

Blake nodded. They stayed in silence for a while. Blake didn't know what to say next. This was perhaps the weirdest encounter she'd had in years, and considering she had met the Avatar not so long ago, that was saying something.

"I'm sorry." Yang said suddenly, standing up.

Blake blinked. "What?"

"My people are a bunch of bullies, liars, and monsters, and I'm not sure I'm any better than them," Yang explained shortly. "I'm gonna leave you alone now."

She started to walk away, headed east. Blake stared at her for a moment, then jumped to her feet and ran to catch up to her. She grabbed Yang by the wrist, stopping her.

"Where are you going?" Blake asked. "The Fire Nation army is that way. Seeing as you're banished, I don't think it's smart for you to go there."

"Maybe. But I need to talk to the Fire Lord," Yang said. "She has a lot of explaining to do, stuff that can't wait. I don't care if I have to fight her whole army to get to her."

"That's just dumb," Blake stated. "You try that, and you'll never get to talk to her. You need to be patient and wait for a better opportunity."

Yang pursed her lips. Blake looked up at the sky and sighed, now understanding how frustrating dealing with someone's stubbornness could be.

"Listen. You can come with me. We'll stick together, stay ahead of the invasion…" Blake said. "And when the time is right, I'll help you get what you want. How does that sound?"

"I don't see why you would do that," Yang said. "No offense, Blake, but we only just met, technically, and you don't exactly give off a very… sociable vibe?"

"You're not wrong. This isn't the kind of stuff I usually do. But times are hard, and we could both use a close ally." Blake looked away. "That, and I'm trying out a new thing… Following someone's example."

Yang cast her a dubious look, but didn't question her motives further. She looked Blake up and down, then cracked a little smile.

"You know what, Blake? I think you're right," she said. "You're kinda weird. I can't really figure you out. But I dig that. So, yeah… let's be friends!"

"Okay…?" Blake didn't know whether to be amused or offended. Furthermore, she didn't recall saying they should be _friends_ , but it looked like Yang had already made up her mind.

"Let's get going, then!" Yang wrapped an arm around Blake's shoulders and started leading her away. "Time's a-wasting, pal."

Blake bit her lip, wondering if she had gotten herself more than she had bargained for.

* * *

"I don't like it."

Qrow lowered his flask, looking at Taiyang as he would a small child. "And I don't like that my back is now creaking when I lay down to sleep sometimes, but there's nothing I can do about it, now is there?"

"It's not the same thing and you know it, Qrow," Taiyang said. "My daughter is running around the Earth Kingdom all by herself in the middle of an invasion, and _I don't like it_."

"Boo hoo. I don't know if you remember, but this is hardly the first time's she's rebelled against you, old man," Qrow pointed out. "You can't coddle her forever. You tried, and look where that got us. You've gotta let her do what she thinks she needs to do, even if that sounds badger-mole insane."

Taiyang shook his head vehemently. He looked at the wartable between them, at the various red dots layered in the east of the Earth Kingdom. Far too many, and somewhere in their midst was his little girl.

"You could protect her, at least," he said grudgingly.

"Hah!" Qrow snapped his head upward, releasing a short laugh. "Look around, Taiyang. The world is at war! There's more important things to worry about than the safety of your masterfully-trained firebender daughter."

Qrow emptied his flask and put it down, then stepped around the table. He stopped before Taiyang and poked his in the chest.

"No. More. _Coddling_."

"…Whatever," Taiyang muttered. "She's still my daughter."

Qrow shrugged, then bent down to pick up his scythe, resting on the side of the table.

"Yeah, sure. Now, if you'll allow me…" He smiled dryly. "I have another daughter of yours to track down."


	28. Training Grounds

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Eight: Training Grounds**

* * *

As Ruby and their friends got further west into the Earth Kingdom, the usual lush green lands filled with forestry and bodies of water turned more arid and mountainous. They were almost directly south of Atlas now, and with their map they could tell that if they were to go just a little bit more south, they would find the Shade desert, which expanded halfway to the southern tip of the continent.

So when they came across a little patch of grass and trees, along with a small lake, none of them had to say anything about stopping there. Not a word was shared as they set up camp. Well… mostly.

"You're mounting that tent all wrong," Weiss said, standing behind Jaune while he kneeled on the ground.

"Am I?" Jaune asked. He poked the side of the half-mounted tent, and though it wobbled a bit, it didn't crumble. "Seems fine to me."

"No, no. The base… hmm… that won't work." Weiss shook her head. "Jaune, have you _never_ mounted a tent before?"

"I have! Several times, in fact!"

"Doubtful."

Jaune turned to glare at her. "Maybe you should help, then, since you're such an expert!"

Weiss turned up her nose and walked away. Jaune grumbled under his breath and got back to work.

Meanwhile, Pyrrha had already finished setting up her own tent. She looked around the camp and noticed Jaune. She paused, wondering if she should help him, but it seemed the task had become a tad personal to him, so he would probably turn her away out of pride.

She looked around once again and spotted Ruby on top of a tree, peering at the horizon. Pyrrha walked over to the tree and looked up at her. "See anything interesting, Ruby?"

"Nope. Some funny cactuses, badger-squirrels…" Ruby shrugged. "And no Fire Nation, at least not yet."

"That's great!" Pyrrha said. "Maybe we can finally start on your earthbending training, then?"

Ruby broke into a huge smile and jumped down to the ground. "Yeah! Awesome!" Her expression turned serious all of a sudden, and she raised a finger. "Just wait a second."

Ruby ran over to Weiss, bowing her head slightly as the princess turned to look at her.

"Weiss, can we stop here for a few days so Pyrrha can start teaching me earthbending?" she asked swiftly.

Weiss held her chin thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded. "Sure. A few days won't hurt. But we all must stay alert for Grimm and the Fire Nation."

"Yes! I will check every ten minutes! No, make that five!" Ruby exclaimed eagerly, then rushed back to Pyrrha.

The earthbender looked down at her, then at Weiss. "Do you ask her permission for everything?"

"What? _No_!" Ruby waved a hand awkwardly. "…Not _everything_!"

"If you say so…" Pyrrha smiled. "Let's find a good place for earthbending."

* * *

Not far at all from camp, they found a small mount, devoid of grass and with plenty of rocks lying about. From there, they could still see Weiss and Jaune, so it made for the ideal training grounds.

Pyrrha was surprised by how Ruby was behaving so far. She could tell Ruby was eager, but despite that she waited patiently while Pyrrha examined their surroundings and prepared herself mentally for what followed.

"Alright. Let's get started," Pyrrha said, then immediately shook her head. "Wait. Before that, do you have any questions?"

"Uhm… no. I guess I'll start having some once we start?" Ruby replied.

"Okay. So, I already showed you the standard earthbending stance for beginners. Can you show it to me?"

Ruby nodded, then closed her eyes, collecting her thoughts. She slowly but surely assumed the stance as best as she remembered, and to her delight, Pyrrha only had to make a couple of slight corrections.

"Alright. That's good…" Pyrrha said. "Now, feel the earth."

"Feel… the earth?" Ruby blinked. "I don't get it."

"It is a little weird, I suppose," Pyrrha conceded. "But it's a normal thing that earthbenders do. We feel the vibrations of the earth, or ground, around and below us. That way, we become connected to our element, and it becomes much easier to bend." She paused. "This probably wasn't the explanation you needed. Just… do it with your feet. Focus."

"Okay…"

Ruby raised a foot, then stomped on the ground. Aside from herself shaking a bit, nothing changed. She frowned, then tried again, but this time with gentler movements.

"…Nothing," she said. "Maybe I should take off my shoes?"

Pyrrha looked down at Ruby's thin shoes, then at her own metal boots. "I guess that might help."

Ruby kicked off her shoes, then tapped her feet a few times, getting more violent with each unsuccessful try. She got so frustrated she started to grumble, and that got louder and louder until she was almost shouting.

Pyrrha rushed over to her and pulled her back gently, snapping her out of it. Ruby spun to face her, looking perfectly calm.

"I can't feel the earth," she said.

"That's fine. We'll get back to it later, alright?" Pyrrha sighed. "This isn't _essential_ to earthbending. I've heard about plenty of people who don't or can't do it but are still great earthbenders. Perhaps you're like that."

"Hmm… Maybe…" Ruby jumped a little, her eyes lighting up again. "I know what we should do! Show me an earthbending move, and then I'll mimic it! That's how I started waterbending, by watching Weiss do it."

Pyrrha nodded, then walked away from her. She faced the opposite direction, then moved forward and stomped, raising a boulder from the ground. She held it there for a second, gave Ruby a glance to see if she wasn't going too fast, then thrust out an arm, sending the boulder flying away fast. It went over the edge of the mount and crashed down below, eliciting a high-pitched scream from Jaune.

"That's a very simple move. Just raise a boulder from the ground and throw it," Pyrrha said. "Try it yourself."

Ruby jumped away a safe distance and closed her eyes, focusing deeply. She could hear the wind flowing by around her, could smell the water and the grass from the camp, but aside from that, she didn't feel anything else. She shook that off and opened her eyes.

She walked forward, staying grounded like Pyrrha had, instead of resorting to her usual flighty way of moving. After a couple of steps, she stomped on the ground and thrust her arms forward.

"…That was just your first try," Pyrrha said. "And it should be a little harder without you feeling the earth."

"Feeling the earth is starting to sound very essential, Pyrrha." Ruby rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Actually, I messed up. I used both arms instead of one. That was the problem, right?"

"That's not really a rule, but… I suppose. Try again with one arm."

Ruby followed her suggestion, trying even harder to get the move right, but once again, the earth didn't move, and she didn't feel even the slightest tingle of earthbending power in her.

Pyrrha put her hands on her hips, frowning worriedly. "Perhaps you're moving too fast?"

"Am I?" Ruby sighed, her shoulders slumped. "We're going to be here for a long time, aren't we?"

* * *

It was nightfall when they returned to camp, both looking frazzled and frustrated. Weiss and Jaune looked up from their seats around the small campfire they had built.

"Wow, you look like you spent a week up there!" Jaune exclaimed in admiration. "Is Ruby a master already?"

Ruby jumped to the branch of a tree and lied down there, wrapping herself in her cloak. Jaune frowned, looking at Pyrrha for answers.

"It didn't go well," Pyrrha said quietly, looking down at her feet.

"Learning how to bend an element is always tough, even for the Avatar," Weiss pointed out. "In fact, I would imagine it's harder for her, since she has to keep track of four of them."

"I wish it was just tough." Pyrrha shook her head. "I couldn't teach Ruby anything at all."

"Oh." Weiss looked away.

"I'm sure tomorrow's gonna be better!" Jaune said cheerfully. "Come and sit down with us, Pyrrha. We were waiting for you to come back so we could eat. Ruby, you should eat too."

Ruby rolled on her branch, turning her back to them. Jaune's eyes widened. If Ruby was refusing food, things really were serious.

"Actually, I think I'm going to sleep now," Pyrrha said hesitantly. "I'm spent."

"Oh, okay. Good night, then," Jaune replied.

"Good night, Pyrrha," Weiss said.

Pyrrha waved at them, then entered her tent and closed it. Weiss and Jaune looked at each other worriedly.

"Well, then… It's just the two of us," Jaune said. "I guess it's a date, then! Haha…"

Weiss glared at him. Jaune gulped, seeing the lake behind her start to waver rapidly.

* * *

The next morning, Ruby woke to the scent of something warm and delicious. She sat up immediately, freeing herself of her cloak, and looked down at the camp.

Jaune and Weiss were sitting around the campfire again, watching as Pyrrha stirred a pot above it. The tall redhead seemed very engrossed in her task, with sweat on her brow and her arms shaking slightly.

"Yo, what's up?" Ruby asked excitedly, jumping off her tree.

"Ruby! I'm glad you're awake!" Pyrrha exclaimed, looking away from the pot to smile at her. "Seeing as how we both didn't eat last night, I took it upon myself to cook us a nice, hearty meal."

"Pyrrha! You didn't have to do that!" Ruby said, although she couldn't be happier about this surprise.

"It's my pleasure," Pyrrha assured. "Besides, this might help you with our session today. My mother always said, a full earthbender is a happy earthbender!"

"Did she really?" Jaune asked.

"No," Pyrrha admitted grudgingly. "I just thought that sounded nice."

Ruby sat down, looking like she was about to explode from how excited she was. After a few more minutes, the meal was ready, and the group took their bowls and offered them to Pyrrha – Ruby stealing Jaune's momentarily so she could get two servings at once, much to his dismay.

True to its smell, the stew was delicious. Pyrrha had used a lot of the ingredients she had taken with her from Mistral, and that paid off grandiosely. Ruby and Weiss were happy to learn it was very much meat-free, and Jaune couldn't even complain about it on account of how good it was.

After eating half of the stew by herself, Ruby couldn't bring herself to take any more, as much as she wanted to. Unfortunately, being the Avatar did not mean having a bottomless stomach, despite what her friends would argue.

"That… was… awesome…" Ruby moaned, falling backwards out of her seat.

"You shouldn't have eaten so much," Weiss chided. "Now you won't be able to move for an hour. That's precious time you could be spending with Pyrrha, training your earthbending."

"Take that back!" Ruby shouted, jumping to her feet. "I am one hundred percent ready! Meet you up top, Pyrrha!"

She took her staff and jumped, flying to the top of the training mount. From there, she waved to the camp cheerfully.

Pyrrha lowered her bowl, smiling hesitantly. "She seems more than ready to me…"

"Ignore her," Weiss advised. "You just started eating. It's her fault if she has to wait until you're ready to join her."

"I don't know, I kind of want to go right now," Pyrrha said. "I have a good feeling about today."

* * *

They spent just as much time training as the day before, but nothing came of it. The strength and the satisfaction from the meal carried them through the first couple hours, but after that, they fell into the same struggle as before.

It wasn't from a lack of trying from both of them that Ruby couldn't earthbend. Pyrrha went through every basic technique she knew several times, bringing them down to the most basic level, and still that was useless. She even showed a few advanced techniques, in the hope that by some freak reason Ruby would be able to mimic those, but that didn't work either.

When Pyrrha's resources met an end, they began trying to apply what Ruby knew of airbending and waterbending, from stances to moves to mentality. That ended up only leaving Ruby embarrassed as she flew arms and legs at thin air to no result.

By the end of the day's session, they were even more frustrated than the last. They went back to camp, but this time, they didn't share a word with their companions, and neither did Jaune nor Weiss try to get them to talk.

* * *

It was halfway through the third day's afternoon that Weiss spotted Ruby flying down from the training grounds. The redhead landed on the camp and walked to her, her steps uncharacteristically heavy.

"Ruby? You should be training with Pyrrha right now. What happened?" Weiss asked.

"I cut our session short," Ruby replied brusquely.

"You did _what_?!" Weiss grabbed her by the shoulder. "Ruby, that is so disrespectful! Pyrrha joined us just so she could teach you. She left her village unprotected because of it! And you're going to dismiss her like that just because earthbending is being a little difficult?"

"It's not just a little difficult, okay?!" Ruby stepped back, pushing her hand away. "And it's not like that. Pyrrha needed a break too. We came to an agreement!"

"I see." Weiss frowned. "I'm sorry. That was an overreaction."

Ruby nodded. "It's okay. Can we just practice some waterbending, please? At least _that_ I can do."

Weiss looked around. It seemed Pyrrha had stayed at the training grounds. If that weren't the case, she would have denied Ruby's request. She didn't want Pyrrha to see them and feel even worse about how her lessons were going.

"Alright, but you must promise you won't make a show out of it. Understood?"

Ruby nodded solemnly. "I promise."

* * *

Later that night, as Weiss settled down to sleep, she noticed a silhouette standing in front of her tent. As she watched, whoever it was crouched and reached for the opening, but stopped suddenly and started to turn around.

Weiss stood up and opened the tent. "Jaune, I swear if you're trying to – oh, hi, Pyrrha."

"Hello," Pyrrha said awkwardly. "…What were you saying about Jaune?"

"Nothing, actually. I'm very paranoid," Weiss replied flatly. "Did you want something?"

"I was hoping we could talk, but it seems like you were going to sleep, so…" Pyrrha trailed off.

"Never mind that. Come in."

Weiss entered the tent and sat down on her sleeping bag, then threw a cushion for Pyrrha to use. The redhead caught it, closed the tent, then sat down beside her.

"So, what is it you wanted to talk about?" Weiss asked. "Ruby, I presume?"

"Exactly," Pyrrha nodded. "I could have asked Jaune, but I believe you should be able to answer me better, seeing as how you're her waterbending teacher."

"Yes. I suppose he might be better suited to answering other questions regarding her…" Weiss said. "Although, I did study a lot about the Avatar back when we were on the North Pole. And he only has to deal with her when she's in a good mood. I have to take care of her _all_ the time. I swear, she would have fallen of a cliff by now if it weren't for me."

Weiss looked away, and Pyrrha couldn't tell whether she was more fond or tired of Ruby. After a few seconds of silence, Pyrrha cleared her throat.

"Sorry. This isn't about me," Weiss said, flustered. "Just ask your questions."

"Well, you already know we've been having a lot of difficulty with our training sessions. To be honest, she hasn't been able to earthbend at all…" Pyrrha said. "I think I might be at fault for that. I've never taught anyone before."

"That shouldn't be much of an issue," Weiss noted. "Ruby was also my first student, and she's a great waterbender now."

"Yes. But you had training beforehand, didn't you? At the North Pole?" Pyrrha asked.

"As a child, yes. But I was only taught he basics. I was a rather… troublesome student when it came to anything past that," Weiss said. "It wasn't right for me, I'm afraid. But I suppose the experience did help me when I began teaching Ruby."

"Well, there's the problem…" Pyrrha lowered her head. "I was never taught earthbending."

Weiss blinked a few times, trying to understand what Pyrrha had just said. Bending without having been taught… It sounded impossible to her. She remembered trying to waterbend when she was very young. She had never been able to, until her sister gave her some pointers, and then her father arranged masters to teach her formally.

"You mean… you didn't have any teachers? None at all?" Weiss asked.

"Not entirely. My parents tried getting a few to teach me when I was a child, but by that point they had nothing to teach me that I didn't already excel at," Pyrrha said.

"How old were you exactly?" Weiss asked suspiciously.

"Five, maybe?" Pyrrha replied hesitantly. "My mother says I was earthbending before I could even walk. I'm sure she exaggerates, but I can't remember a time when I couldn't. It's just… natural to me."

"So in your eyes, it's like you're trying to teach Ruby how to walk, but she simply isn't getting it. She's not even lifting a foot," Weiss said. "That sounds very frustrating."

"Yes, but she seems even more frustrated than me," Pyrrha said. "Is there anything you think might help me?"

Weiss held in a sigh. She had had her troubles teaching Ruby, but those seemed superficial now. Dealing with her becoming grumpy after failing a technique a tad too many times or becoming distracted often wasn't that big a deal. She knew both Ruby and Pyrrha were dedicating themselves fully to their sessions, but nothing was coming of it… and that, she couldn't help with.

"I'm sorry," Weiss said softly. "Just… let her do her thing? She doesn't respond well to being directed strictly."

"Yes, I've figured that out already." Pyrrha sighed. She stood up. "Thanks anyway, Weiss."

"It was nothing. I'm always willing to help," Weiss replied. "Good luck! Hopefully you'll have a breakthrough tomorrow."

"Yeah…" Pyrrha muttered. "Hopefully."

She exited the tent, leaving Weiss alone inside of it. The princess lied down, wondering if the conversation had done more harm than good.

* * *

"I don't get it. There _must_ be something I'm doing wrong."

Ruby dropped to the ground. She hugged her legs and rested her head on her knees, glaring at a boulder as if it were her mortal enemy.

Pyrrha circled around her once, looking down at her with pity. Sighing, she bent the rock away from their sight, then sat where it had been, facing Ruby.

"Listen, Ruby. We are both too frustrated to do anything productive," Pyrrha said. "We can't keep bashing our heads against this problem, hoping it goes away. Patience is the key to everything, not just earthbending."

"I guess you're right…" Ruby took a deep breath. "What do we do, then?"

"I don't know. It's a beautiful day."

Ruby looked up at the sky. It was sunny, not a cloud in sight. The breeze carried a pleasant smell that lingered wherever it passed. On days like these, it was easy to forget the Earth Kingdom was being invaded by the Fire Nation.

Ruby shook her head. Not a good thought. She was supposed to be relaxing, not worrying about the world. She looked at Pyrrha, hoping to find something to spark a conversation.

The sun was directly above them, its light reflecting off of Pyrrha's shield. Ruby glanced away, wincing. And just like that, came the spark.

"Pyrrha, how come you can metalbend?"

Pyrrha took out her shield and laid it down between them. "I haven't always been able to do it. That would just be crazy," she said. "I discovered it when I was twelve, if I remember correctly, and even then it took a long time to get a proper grasp on the technique. I'm still learning more about it to this day."

"Oh, so there _is_ something that's tricky for you to do. That's good to know." Ruby giggled. "But how does it work?"

"Think of it like this: metal is just a different type of earth. It's more refined, but it's still earth. All I have to do is sense the earth in it, and I can bend it," Pyrrha explained. "It can be very difficult sometimes, but it's easier with objects I'm familiar with, like my shield."

"Do you think there's a chance I can metalbend?" Ruby asked doubtfully.

Pyrrha shrugged, then gestured at the shield. Ruby closed her eyes, then slowly lowered a hand to touch the shield. She focused on the texture of the metal, then pressed a little, trying to find the earth Pyrrha had talked about.

After what felt like an eternity of searching, Ruby pulled back and opened her eyes, at the same time releasing her breath. "Nothing."

"It was a far shot," Pyrrha said. "I would have been surprised if you were able to do it."

Ruby's face closed up. Pyrrha raised her hands, alarmed.

"I-I didn't mean it like that!" she exclaimed.

"I know. But you wouldn't be wrong anyway. I can't earthbend." Ruby stood up. "Sorry, Pyrrha, but I give up."

Pyrrha jumped to her feet and reached for Ruby, but the younger girl had already turned and ran away, leaping off the training grounds. Pyrrha looked down the edge of the mount, only to see Ruby soar past the camp and disappear behind another mount in the distance.

* * *

"Ruby!" Jaune called out, cupping his hands around his mouth so his voice would spread further through the field of the Earth Kingdom. "Ruby, where are you?!"

He sped up his steps, going up a hill to get a better view of his surroundings. He was hoping Ruby hadn't gone too far, but with her being able to fly, that was unlikely. She was pretty adept at hiding when she wanted to be alone…

And when she didn't want to be, she was also very good at making that known. Jaune sighed in relief, at last spotting his best friend sitting on top of another hill in front on him, her staff stuck vertically on the ground like a signpost. He ran over to her as fast as he could, losing his breath along the way.

"R-Ruby…" he gasped, leaning on his knees tiredly. "I'm so glad I found you…"

"Hey, Jaune," Ruby said quietly. "Sorry I ran so far."

"It's okay. You must have had a good reason." Jaune sat down beside her. "What's up?"

Ruby lowered her head in shame, her chin quivering noticeably. "I can't earthbend."

"That sounds like an overreaction," Jaune said carefully. "You're just having a tough time learning. That's all."

"No! Pyrrha's an awesome teacher. I understand everything she teaches me, I'm getting the moves right… but nothing happens!" Ruby groaned. "You don't get it, Jaune. It's like if you were trying to walk, and you're telling your legs to move and they just _won't_ _do it_."

Jaune rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He really had no idea how bending felt like, but he could imagine how it would feel to suddenly lose the ability for it.

"Jaune, I think might be the worst Avatar ever," Ruby said, covering her face with her hands.

"Come on, Ruby, you know that's not true…" Jaune said. "You've had trouble learning before. Back in the North Pole, with Winter."

"That was different," Ruby shook her head. "I could waterbend just fine then. The problem was the way I was being taught. Pyrrha's more than great."

"I guess… But there must have been a time you couldn't bend at all, right?" Jaune asked. "How did you learn to airbend?"

"My mom taught me. It was super easy, and we had tons of fun. But air is my natural element, so of course it would be that way."

Jaune nodded, agreeing with her. Slowly, however, he went over her words again and started to have another idea.

"Wait. So it was easy to learn from your mother, and from Weiss… but not from Winter," he said. "Ruby, maybe it's not about how you are taught, but who your teachers are, and how you feel about them."

"What?" Ruby looked at him as if he were crazy. "That makes no sense. How would my feelings about my teachers affect how I bend?"

"I don't know. _I'm_ not a bender." Jaune raised his hands helplessly. "I'm just saying. Your mother was, well, your mother. You're super close to Weiss, and there's that thing I'm not supposed to mention about you and her too." He shrugged. "Pyrrha, on the other hand…"

"But I like Pyrrha! I like her a lot! She's like, super awesome!" Ruby protested.

"But we barely know her. You probably aren't super comfortable around her yet," Jaune said. "I mean, for one, I haven't caught you goofing around during her lessons yet, like it always happens with Weiss. And you haven't stolen any food from her either." His eyes narrowed. "That's how we can tell you've really lost all respect for someone."

Ruby frowned, and now Jaune could see she was actually considering his idea. Maybe it was farfetched, but what other explanation was there? That Ruby was the first Avatar to not be able to bend all four elements?

Before the redhead could reach a conclusion, they heard someone else's steps approaching them fast. They got up, and a few seconds later, Weiss appeared, sliding to a halt before them.

"Ruby! You have to get back to camp, fast!" the princess shouted.

"Why? What's going on?!" Ruby asked, panic rising in her throat.

"It's Pyrrha… She's leaving!"

* * *

Pyrrha slung her bag over her shoulder and checked its weight. It felt like everything she owned was there, aside from the select things she was leaving behind for the others, like food and some of her money.

Night would be coming soon, but if she moved fast, she could reach a village and get her bearing from there. Her best plan was to learn where her parents had ended up fleeing to and go join them, but she was willing to change it up as needed.

But before she got going, she needed to refill her canteen. She bent down at the edge of the lake and got to it, doing her best to ignore the nagging doubts that were imploring her to change her mind. Leaving would hurt a lot, and not only her… but she knew it was the right thing to do.

Once her canteen was filled, Pyrrha stood up and began walking out of the camp. Right as she crossed its limits, she heard a commotion behind her and turned to look. Ruby had landed hastily on the dry wood of the campfire, knocking the pile over and stumbling.

"Pyrrha!" Ruby screamed. "Don't go!"

Pyrrha turned hesitantly. She could just ignore her, but she was certain Ruby would stop her if she tried that. She needed to reason with her, get her to understand why she was doing this.

"I'm sorry, Ruby," Pyrrha said. "It's not about you. Please understand that. It's just… I need to leave." She looked away guiltily. "The only reason I left my village was so I could teach you. And if I can't do that, then… Well, there's no reason for me to stick around."

"But there is!" Ruby shouted. "We're friends!"

"That's not enough. Not when my people are in danger."

Jaune and Weiss arrived at the camp running at full speed. They stopped behind Ruby, staring apprehensively at Pyrrha. The earthbender held back a sigh. Now that everyone was there, it made leaving even harder.

"Pyrrha, I'm sorry I couldn't earthbend. It really wasn't your fault," Ruby said. "It's mine. But if we keep at it, I promise it will work out. It's like you said… patience is the key to everything."

"I was lying, then. Sometimes you have to give up when there are more urgent things at stake," Pyrrha said. "There are plenty of skilled earthbenders around. I'm sure you'll find a teacher for you if you search hard enough." She paused, measuring her next words carefully. "The truth is, you guys were doing just fine before I came along. You don't need me."

"But… but…" Ruby clenched her fists, frustration welling up inside her.

Pyrrha raised a hand to Jaune and Weiss, bidding them farewell. Weiss replied in form, and after a moment of hesitation, so did Jaune. Smiling bitterly, Pyrrha turned around and took a step forward.

" _No_!"

Pyrrha yelped, stumbling back as a rocky spire burst from the ground in front of her. She flicked a hand, burying the spire back down, wondering how she had done that without even thinking about it… and realized she hadn't done it at all.

"Ruby!" Weiss exclaimed. "You did it! Congratulations!"

"Did I?" Ruby blinked, lowering her arms. "I did! Woohoo!"

Pyrrha turned around, flabbergasted. Ruby raised a foot and brought it down forcefully. Her eyes widened, and she went stumbling around the camp, as if she were sleepwalking.

"Wooow…" Ruby said. "That's so weeeird… It's like I'm seeing _through the ground_ …"

"Yes!" Pyrrha clasped her hands joyfully. "That's exactly how it feels!"

"I feel the earth…" Ruby continued, stopping to stomp on the ground again. "Wooow that's so weeeeird…"

Jaune backed away from Ruby, more than a little weirded out, and looked at Weiss for help. The princess answered his look with a shrug.

Ruby snapped from her trance, straightening up and turning to face Pyrrha. Her eyes straightened, and she slid forward, bringing her leg up in a mighty kick. A boulder burst from the ground, aimed directly at Pyrrha, who demolished it easily.

"I can earthbend!" Ruby yelled. "I told you! Now you can't leave, you _have_ to teach me!"

"I… have to?" Pyrrha looked down at her bag. "I'm not so sure about that…"

"Yes, you do!" Ruby growled. "If you try to leave, I will bury you so deep underground you'll never see the light of day again!"

Pyrrha blinked, taken aback by the ferocity of the response. "I was just kidding."

"…Right!" Ruby laughed nervously. "So was I."

Pyrrha shook her head and walked back into the camp, dropping her bag on the ground. She was feeling very awkward after her stunt, and she was sure that wouldn't change soon, if at all. But when she looked up again, she found Weiss had already started bickering Jaune about something, while Ruby was staring expectantly at her.

"We're starting real training right now," Ruby decided, leaving no room for argument.

"Okay. If that's what you want," Pyrrha said. "But before we go, tell me something. Why can you earthbend now? Did something click when you ran away? Did it just… happen?"

"No, it's just…" Ruby smiled sheepishly, then closed the distance between them and hugged her. "I didn't want you to leave."

Pyrrha stood frozen for a second, not knowing how to respond. It had been a long time since she had been hugged by anyone other than her parents.

"That's… that's nice," she said, shutting her eyes. She returned the hug, resting her chin on Ruby's head. "I'll never leave. I promise."


	29. The Rift

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Nine: The Rift**

* * *

"Now, over your head… forward, low… and spread!"

Ruby grunted, thrusting her arms to her sides, and the boulder she was bending parted into two pieces. She closed her hands, struggling to keep the now separate rocks floating.

Earthbending was different from the arts she was already proficient at. Unlike the air, the earth was a physical element, and unlike the water, it had real weight to it. It took bodily effort to earthbend. She now understood just why Pyrrha was so strong and fit.

"Nice work," Pyrrha said, applauding modestly. "However, you are still using more strength than is necessary. Let yourself relax, and the control you need will become second nature."

"Ugh… that's easy for you to say, Miss _I earthbended my way out of my crib_ ," Ruby said through gritted teeth. "Sorry. This is just really difficult."

"No offense taken." Pyrrha walked to her. "You're progressing wonderfully, Ruby!"

She patted Ruby on the back, inadvertently causing her to lose focus and drop the rocks, which shattered on impact with the ground. Ruby groaned, collapsing on her back.

"Oops," Pyrrha blinked. "Sorry. If you want to take a break, I'll go fetch us some-"

She stopped talking suddenly, her back straightening and arms tensing. Not speaking a word, Pyrrha turned around gracefully, taking her shield from her back in the same motion and throwing it.

At the edge of their makeshift training grounds, metal collided against metal, and the shield came flying back to Pyrrha. Ruby sat up and turned to look, her eyes widening as she beheld their unexpected visitor.

"You always greet your allies like this?" Qrow asked, hanging his scythe on his shoulder. "Because if you do… good job."

"Qrow!" Ruby jumped to her feet. She looked at Pyrrha, gesturing for her to put down her shield. "He's a friend."

"Oh!" Pyrrha inspected Qrow from head to toe. "I'm so sorry! You caught me off-guard - I almost didn't feel you coming."

"Almost? I must be slacking off." Qrow sighed dramatically. "So you're earthbending now, kiddo? Already done with waterbending?"

"Uh, no, not really. I'm pretty good with waterbending, but there's still a lot I need to learn," Ruby said. "And I've barely started with earthbending…"

"Well, I'd still say you're a force to be reckoned with. I've heard lots of different accounts of the Siege of the North Pole, but all of them included how the Avatar turned away the Fire Nation almost single-handedly." Qrow put down his scythe, leaning against it. "That's good. Very, very good…"

Ruby lowered her head, not knowing what to say. She didn't know Qrow well at all, but she figured he wasn't the type to compliment people easily.

"Anyway. I didn't track you down all the way here just to feed your ego," Qrow said, his voice and face becoming much more serious. "We have a lot to talk about, Avatar."

* * *

The lush landscape of the eastern Earth Kingdom was littered by gray, black and red. The first two colors came from the monstrous machines that advanced on steadily, passing over and destroying the vegetation without reserve. The latter came from the banners of the Fire Nation, held high by the scout units at the front of the army.

It was a quiet advance, but that only made it all the more terrifying.

Blake went down on one knee, looking over the edge of the mount they had camped on. Behind her, Yang also watched, equally as taciturn.

"Tell me you know the reason behind all this," Blake said, looking back at Yang.

"I don't." Yang kept her eyes away from her newfound friend, a fact Blake did not fail to notice. "Well, maybe I do."

"Maybe?" Blake repeated. "Is the motive really so complex that even the Fire Lord's daughter can't sure of it?"

"That's not… I think I know why, but I'm hoping I'm wrong," Yang explained quickly. "That's why we're here, anyway. To get some answers."

"Personally, I always preferred getting my answers from books."

Blake didn't speak another word about the matter. She already understood that when Yang set her mind about something, especially something as serious as this, there was no convincing her to change course.

"You know, you can always leave," Yang said. "It's not too late. If you're quick, you might be able to evade the invasion yet…"

"I know. The thought's crossed my mind a couple times." Blake shrugged. "I'm staying."

"…Thanks, Blake."

* * *

"Alright, listen up. I know this is sudden and that you weren't expecting me, or anyone for that matter, to drop by and starting ordering you all around…" Qrow said. "But you're gonna listen to me, because it's in your best interest – and by that, I mean the world's best interest."

Ruby nodded eagerly, sitting down in front of him at the center of their camp. Jaune followed her example, looking perfectly serious. Weiss took a while longer to comply, not being fond of anyone talking to her that way. Pyrrha remained standing, but was nonetheless agreeable to the makeshift meeting.

"Everyone's in understanding? Yes? Good." Qrow took a deep breath. "I'm not going to pull my punches, folks. Nobody was expecting the Fire Nation to invade the Earth Kingdom, not to this scale, and certainly not with the Fire Lord herself leading the charge. I pride myself in my work, but even I didn't know until they were here."

"The truth is, I was hoping they would turn tail sooner or later. Just the thought of conquering the Earth Kingdom is taxing. Actually doing it? You'd have to be mad to try." Qrow threw his hands up helplessly. "My sister's always had a way of surprising me, for better or worse."

"The Fire Nation is not going to stop. They are going to keep going, and going, and going, until the last of their troops is defeated. And frankly… things are not going to turn out that way. The Earth Kingdom is not strong enough to hold them off. Vale _will_ fall," he paused. "That's why the Avatar needs to get into the fight right now, before it's too late."

Ruby shuddered, her face becoming pale. She grasped the edge of her cloak and twisted it around her fingers, feeling herself start to shake. Beside her, Jaune drew closer and passed an arm around her shoulders.

"Are you serious? You can't expect…" Weiss started to say, but her voice trailed off. She shook her head, regathering her thoughts. "Ruby is not ready to fight the Fire Nation. She hasn't mastered the four elements yet."

"That's true, but she's a master airbender, a proficient waterbender, and she understands at least the basics of earthbending. If you're keeping note, that's two more elements than the usual bender," Qrow said. "The Avatar's mastering of the four elements is just a tradition, or a guideline. It would be better for Ruby to complete her training, yes, but considering the circumstances…"

"Considering the circumstances, it's okay to throw her at an army half-prepared, because you're _desperate_ ," Weiss said, a cold edge to her voice. "You realize you're asking her to go to war?"

"I understand your concerns. Trust me, if there was _any other way_ to go about things, if there was a way to slow down the Fire Nation and give Ruby the time she needs to complete her training, I would fight for that," Qrow said. "But we live in the real world, where we have to make do with what we're given, not what we want."

Weiss stood up, clenching her fists. "You can try to justify this any way you want, but it won't change anything. I see it for what it is."

Qrow huffed, for the first time appearing truly frustrated, but whether it was because of Weiss or himself, Ruby couldn't tell. She looked between the two of them, hoping the argument would end at that, but she knew that was expecting too much.

To her surprise, it wasn't either of them who reignited the discussion, but Jaune. "You know, I see your point, Weiss, and I really wanna agree with you, but…" he spoke hesitantly. "Ruby _is_ super powerful. We've been there since the beginning, we know what she's capable of. In the North Pole…"

"What happened in the North Pole was a fraction of the battle that's going to happen here," Weiss said. "And might I remind you that the only reason Ruby broke the siege was because she accessed the Avatar State? A power we know virtually nothing about?"

"Yeah, well…" Jaune bowed his head. "She always pulls through."

"Until she _doesn't_." Weiss' eyes narrowed. "Honestly, Jaune. You of all people should be on my side."

"Really? I would think otherwise," Qrow spoke suddenly. "As the only non-bender in your group, Jaune has a unique perspective on things. When he looks at Ruby, I would imagine he sees her for the amazingly powerful Avatar she is… and not a fragile child to be protected."

Weiss whipped around to face him. " _Excuse_ me? What are you trying to imply?"

"Come on. You're a clever girl," Qrow smiled dryly. "You shouldn't need the implication spelled out for you."

Ruby winced, watching as Weiss tensed up, one of the princess' hands – the one closer to the waterskin she kept at her waist – opening and closing repeatedly. Qrow's smile only grew.

"Well, then," he said. "Message received? Are we on the same level, princess?"

"Oh, that's it," Weiss hissed. "Get out, or I'm dragging you out inside of a bubble."

"I'd like to see you try."

"Guys, come on," Jaune butted in. "Let's simmer down and talk like reasonable people, okay?"

"Jaune, the only _reasonable_ action I'm inclined to take right now is to toss you into that lake."

"Now that's just unfair."

"According to Qrow over here, the world is unfair, so tough luck."

"Princess, you are as delicate as your sister, and about _twice_ as insufferable."

Ruby leaned forward, feeling the beginnings of a headache. She wanted nothing more than to shout at everyone to stop talking, but it seemed like she had lost her voice all of a sudden. And even if she could get them to listen, what would she say? Which side was she supposed to take?

She looked up, immediately crossing eyes with Pyrrha. Ruby didn't say a word, but after a few seconds, Pyrrha seemed to be in complete understanding of what she was going through. Without a moment's hesitation, the earthbender stomped on the ground with one foot, causing a small rumble.

"That's enough, everyone," she said, her voice perfectly even. "I think if anyone deserves a chance to speak right now, that person is Ruby. Can we agree on that, at least?"

Silence reigned. Jaune took his arm off of Ruby's shoulders and looked away, ashamed. Qrow slumped backwards, losing his smile. After a moment, Weiss sat back down.

"I'm sorry, Ruby. We were all out of line," Weiss muttered. "Speak."

Ruby took a deep breath, barely able to stay still. She knew this feeling of anxiousness well. It was a constant factor every time she fought the Grimm and the Fire Nation. But without a battle raging around her, the feeling was much worse. There was a finality to this moment. Whatever she said next, she could never take back.

"I… I'm going to be honest right now. This whole thing sounds scary, and I'm not sure I understand everything you guys are arguing about, but…" She paused, giving Weiss a quick, nervous glance. "The one thing that I'm sure of is that I want to help people. I want to be the Avatar everyone needs me to be. And if that means fighting the Fire Nation before I'm fully prepared… that's what I'll do."

"Ruby..." Weiss said hesitantly. "If that's what you want, then I'll support you. But you shouldn't feel pressured to make this decision. You might be the Avatar, but that doesn't mean you have to put yourself in such danger every time."

"I think it does mean that, actually," Ruby said. "Better me than anyone else, right?"

Weiss frowned, as if she didn't know what to make of that statement.

"Well, then, if that's settled," Qrow said, getting up and stretching a little. "We should get going."

"Going where?" Jaune asked, surprised.

"We're going to meet with the Earth army, loathe as I am to say it," Qrow huffed. "You guys ever heard of the Rift?"

* * *

The sound of metal scraping against metal filled the cave, echoing again and again in regularly-timed periods. The back of the cave was cold and moist, but as it got closer to the entrance, the temperature rose steeply. The smell of diluted metal permeated the air.

Emerald sat up and rubbed her eyes in frustration, wishing she could do as Mercury and just sleep. Despite the noise and the place they were in, he seemed to have no problem spending half the day asleep, sprawled on the ground and snoring.

On the other hand, Emerald, a self-declared sane person, couldn't keep her eyes closed for more than a couple of minutes. It wasn't that she could only sleep in fluffy beds with four walls and a roof around her – she had had to settle for the worst more often than not in her life – but that something was bothering her deeply, some feeling she couldn't put to words, and it was keeping her awake. It could be fear, but what could she be afraid of, in the company she was in?

Realizing that trying to sleep once again would only get her in a worse mood, Emerald got up and walked to the front of the cave. Cinder was sat there, empty quiver to the side and two piles of arrows before her – the sharp ones, and the ones yet to be sharpened. Emerald couldn't tell which was which.

"Emerald," Cinder said, not even looking at her. She turned the arrow in her hand and dragged the blade of her knife along its head. "Am I bothering you with the noise?"

"No," Emerald replied in reflex. "Not at all."

"Emerald, Emerald. How can you expect me to trust you when you lie about something so trivial?" Cinder smirked. "Just ask me kindly, and I'll stop."

Emerald bit her lip, afraid this was some kind of test. She wouldn't put it past Cinder to question her ability to stand up for herself, only to punish her for doing so. But she could also very well punish her for _not_ standing up.

Not for the first time, and surely not the last, Emerald regretted not having the guts to refuse to help Cinder back at Atlas. It would have saved her so much grief…

"Could you… leave that for later, then?" Emerald asked, bracing herself for the answer.

"Of course." Cinder put down the arrow and finally looked up at her. For a moment, Emerald could swear she saw some playfulness in her eyes. "You thought this was a test, didn't you?"

"N-no!"

Cinder sighed. "What did I just tell you about lying?" She shook her head. "Don't worry. I was just teasing you, believe it or not. Now, sit down and ask me about that thing that's been irking you all day."

Emerald really should not have been surprised by that statement. Cinder was disturbingly perceptive about everything and everyone around her, which Emerald supposed was why she was so good at her job.

Still a bit apprehensive, but trying not to show it – which she knew was a futile effort - Emerald sat down beside Cinder. "I didn't realize I had something to ask."

"Yes, well, you are so afraid I'll summon a Grimm and have it eat you in your sleep, you can't even think straight anymore," Cinder said. "You are wondering what we are waiting for in this disgusting cave. Correct?"

"I guess." Emerald frowned. "What _are_ we waiting for, Cinder?"

"War," the huntress replied simply. "But why?, you think. Shouldn't we be hunting the Avatar? We are. You see, the problem that old Roman Torchwick had, besides being an utter fool of a man, is that he had no patience. He chased the Avatar like they were kids on a playground, always trailing behind her, trying to grab her by the cape." She clucked her tongue. "No subtlety. Not only did he tire himself out, he let her know all his flaws and competences ahead of time."

"Isn't that what you did with the princess, though?" Emerald asked.

Cinder fixed her with a glare. "And I paid dearly for that mistake. But I am not Roman Torchwick. He was arrogant. Granted, I would not call myself humble… but I have the power to back it up." She paused. "My point is, why chase after someone when you know exactly where they are going?"

"Ah. I see," Emerald nodded. "And where is the Avatar going?"

Cinder snapped her fingers, conjuring a tiny flame between them, and grabbed an arrow. She set the fire below its head, slowly tempering the iron.

"Pay attention, Emerald," Cinder said. "She's going to war."

* * *

Guided by Qrow, the group traveled for two days, headed northwest, for a few hours seeing Atlas in the horizon before it once again faded in the distance. By noon of the third day, the Rift Qrow had mentioned showed up before their eyes as they reached the top of a hill.

From a point they couldn't yet locate, the earth split and widened into a chasm the size of a small city. It originated somewhere west, went east, then took a steep turn north and disappeared from sight. At no point did the chasm become any narrower. The only way to travel from one side to the other were stone bridges scattered throughout its length.

"It's said that long ago existed two neighboring cities which, in their prime, were the richest and most powerful in the Earth Kingdom," Qrow told the group. "For centuries they coexisted peacefully. When they worked together, the most wonderful of inventions were created. Once every year, they'd throw a festival celebrating their friendship, and people from all around the world would come."

"But that all ended when they went to war against each other. Nobody truly knows why, but they fought, and the Earth Kingdom was split between those who supported one city, or the other. It was the biggest civil war in known History."

"The Avatar of that age tried to mend the conflict between the two cities, but she was met with no success. Every year, the war got worse. Realizing that neither people were even considering giving up, the Avatar finally decided to take ultimate action."

"Using all the power she had in her, the Avatar split the ground between the two cities, ending the war. The peoples of the city couldn't as much as see each other anymore. It was then that they realized how foolish they had been to fight their own neighbors, but it was too late. No amount of regret could ever close the rift they had opened."

A sense of dread overwhelmed Ruby as she contemplated Qrow's story.

"But… look! They made bridges!" she said. "There's that, at least."

"There is." Qrow shrugged. "But all bridges burn eventually."

He gave her a sad smile and kept walking.

* * *

They crossed the Rift using one of the stone bridges, which was a scary experience for everyone, even Ruby, who with her airbending could have certainly recovered from an unfortunate fall. It was during that moment that they realized just how big the Rift was, and they weren't even at its widest point.

After two more days of travel, they arrived at their destination, a small town which had been turned into an impromptu Earth army camp after its locals were evacuated. There were hundreds upon hundreds of soldiers there, and double the number of weapons lying around.

The town was not distant at all from the Rift. They could see soldiers standing guard at either side of it, and civilians coming in masses through the bridges. Seeing how hurried and scared they were, Ruby was now certain she had made the right choice.

Qrow took them directly to the main tent, where they found a familiar man with graying hair and frightening stature, wearing a traditional army uniform, standing behind a strategy table. Ruby wondered who he was for a while, until she remembered his name: James Ironwood, the General who had helped her in Atlas when Yang had tried to capture her for the fifteenth time.

Huh. Times certainly had changed…

The general looked up, his face puzzled. "Hello. How can I-" He cut himself short. "Qrow!" he exclaimed, becoming visibly angry. "How the hell did you get in here?"

"I walked?" Qrow snorted. "I'm here to make a delivery."

He shoved Ruby forward lightly. The Avatar stumbled a little, then threw him a mild glare over her shoulder.

"The Avatar? A delivery?" Ironwood said in disbelief. "What is the meaning of this?"

"I thought she would be a great help to your plans and took it upon myself to recruit her," Qrow explained. "You can thank me later."

"My plans? I never _told you_ my plans."

Qrow tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow. Ironwood sighed, seemingly accepting defeat.

"I suppose it would be useless to order you to leave," he said.

"Yep." Qrow grinned. "I'm here whether you like it or not, _General_."

"Wait, I thought you were allies with the Earth army?" Weiss piped up.

"Did I give that impression? Sorry, but I'm an ally of good - thank you very much." Qrow made a little flourish, much to Ironwood's chagrin.

The General rubbed his temple for a moment, then looked at Ruby. She gave him a big smile, which he replied to with a nod.

"Avatar Ruby. It's an honor to see you again," he said. "I take it you are here of your own accord?"

"Yep. We all made sure of that before we got here!" Ruby replied.

"I suppose I have no qualm with accepting your help, then," Ironwood said. "I must admit I hadn't considered it before, but you might indeed be exactly what we need to pull this off…"

He tapped his hand on the table before him, drawing everyone's attention to a map which portrayed the area between Atlas and Vale. The Rift was a major eye-catcher, spanning from the upper west of Atlas, almost reaching the south of Vale.

"The Fire Nation army is approaching fast from the east, as I'm sure you know," Ironwood said. "Our scouts calculate that, at their current pace, they will reach the Rift in three days' time. However, they are likely to pick up more speed when they reach plainer terrain, so we are considering their arrival to be in two days."

"And when they get here, what's the plan?" Weiss asked. "I imagine they would not try crossing the Rift. That would be suicide. We could just collapse the bridges with them on it."

"Yes. They will turn at the Rift, most likely south. From there, it's a shorter march to the capital," Ironwood said. "Our response will be to accompany their advance from our side of the Rift and wither them down, collapsing the bridges behind us as we leave them, so as to keep them from crossing and attacking us from the back."

"That's brilliant!" Jaune exclaimed. "By the time they get to the end of the Rift, they'll be much weaker. We'll be able to fight on better terms!"

"I'm afraid it's not that simple. The Fire Nation army is larger than ours, and its soldiers are just as powerful," Ironwood interjected. "But, yes, without this tactic, we might as well hand over the kingdom to them."

"Where do I come in?" Ruby asked.

"Our army will be separated in two groups. The vast majority of our soldiers will stay on this side, preparing for the actual battle and helping as they can," Ironwood said. "The remaining soldiers will be arranged in small groups at the other side, stationed at the feet of each bridge, where they'll do the most damage. They'll also be responsible for collapsing them when the time comes."

A heavy silence followed as Ruby and her friends went over his words again and again. Qrow crossed his arms and shook his head, like someone who had heard something they didn't like, but knew they couldn't argue with it.

"But that means…" Ruby said. "That means they won't be able to come back. They'll likely be captured, or…"

"Yes. That is the price we'll have to pay for a chance at victory." Ironwood bowed his head solemnly. "You are the Avatar. You may choose your place on the battlefield as you like."

Ruby looked at her friends. Their dismayed expressions were almost funny. They already knew her answer far in advance.

* * *

"I still say, of all of your stupid, bonehead ideas, this one is easily the worst."

Ruby sighed, poking the campfire once more with her staff to get the embers going faster. She tried to ignore Weiss' scathing look from the other side of the fire, but it was impossible.

"I agree," Jaune said, after swallowing a big piece of leopard-buffalo meat.

"Thank you!" Weiss clapped her hands. "See, when even _Jaune_ says that you are being dumb, you have to reconsider things."

"I know, right?" Jaune picked up another piece of meat with his fork and almost brought it to his mouth, stopping just short of it. "Wait, what?"

"You are the _Avatar_!" Weiss insisted. "It's not just your personal safety, Ruby – which already is reason enough not to go through with it - the fate of the Earth Kingdom and the whole world is at stake here!"

"Hmm, yes, steak." Jaune promptly forgot how he had been slighted and bit into the meat.

" _Please_ reconsider," Weiss begged. "I'll give you as many hugs as you want for the rest of our days."

The offer was tempting, but Ruby remained steadfast in her decision. Weiss looked at Pyrrha for help, but she just shrugged. If Ruby's oldest friends couldn't change her mind, she would have no chance either.

"You could at least let us go with you," Weiss said, and this time the tone of her voice really got to Ruby.

"No," Ruby replied quietly. "You are also important. You need to go to Vale and arrange the alliance between the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribe. If the war is to end, we're gonna need that."

Ruby did not mention that was the least of her reasons for rejecting Weiss' help. Supporting her decisions with her emotions would only make her a hypocrite.

"What about me?" Jaune spoke up. "I'm not a princess. I don't need to arrange any alliances."

"Yeah, but I need you to protect Weiss," Ruby said.

"Excuse me, I'm not some defenseless dolt to be-" Weiss paused, looking at Jaune. "…Yes, if I'm not going, you should stay with me."

"You know, this is very insulting and very heartwarming at the same time," Jaune stated. "I guess that's all of my relationships in a nutshell. I still want to come with Ruby, though."

"Monkey-feathers." Ruby groaned. "Why can't you guys be more like Pyrrha and agree with everything I say? Right, Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha gave her a thumbs-up.

"Yeah. Pyrrha's awesome, see?" Ruby smiled.

"She's barely been with us and she's already usurped me as the favorite." Weiss huffed.

Jaune looked at her dubiously. "I thought I was the favorite?"

"As if!" Weiss scoffed. "Ruby, tell Jaune I'm your favorite. Or _used_ to be, anyway." She fixed Pyrrha with a glare.

"I'm sorry?" Pyrrha offered reluctantly.

Ruby shook her head and walked away, leaving them to their discussion.

She wandered through the camp for a while, observing the soldiers from afar. It was strange to think that these people who were now laughing and joking with each other would soon be fighting a battle for their kingdom. Some of them recognized her as the Avatar and cheered. Ruby waved at them shyly and kept on her way.

Eventually, she found herself at the edge of the Rift, looking down at the darkness of it. She picked up a rock and dropped it, but couldn't hear anything, nor feel any tremors even after a whole minute had passed. Just how deep had her predecessor split the earth? And who had she been? She decided to consult Ozpin later and ask him if he remembered.

She looked at the horizon and spotted the flames of the Fire Nation, far, far away, bright in the night. Were they resting? Were they joking and laughing too? What about the Fire Lord?

She felt an arm snake around her shoulders and a hand pass through her hair, ruffling it up a bit.

"Hey, kiddo," Qrow said. "You scared?"

Ruby had lied to her friends, said that she wasn't too worried about the mission, that whatever side of the Rift she was during the battle didn't matter. She had had to do that, or they would have tied her down in a chair to keep her from going, or something like that.

But Qrow wasn't her friend. Well, he was, but in a different way. He belonged to a part of her life which she had been out of touch with for far too long. Besides, even if she lied, he wouldn't believe her.

"I'm really, _really_ scared…"

"Well, you're right to be. War is a scary thing. _I'm_ scared," Qrow said. "All the violence and loss… It's such an unnecessary thing." His eyes narrowed as they scanned the horizon. "Damn my sister for forcing it on us."

"That's… not all I'm scared about," Ruby looked away. "I'm scared of letting everyone down. The whole world is counting on me."

"That's true. You have a lot of responsibility resting on your shoulders, and you have to try and fulfill it with all you got. I can't sugarcoat that." Qrow patted her on the shoulder. "But take it from me, the cynical old man who betrayed his own country and family…" He smiled. "I believe in you."

Ruby hugged him, squeezing him around the stomach so hard he gasped and bent down to catch his breath. She squeaked and jumped away, covering her mouth with her hands.

"I-I'm sorry!" she exclaimed. "I don't know my own strength!"

Qrow stood up with some effort. "Eh, you're actually pretty weak," he said. "But you took me by surprise."

"Hey, I'm not weak! I'm the Avatar!" Ruby flexed her muscles. Qrow just stared impassively. "Yeah, being the Avatar doesn't come with muscles..."

Qrow smiled, his eyes twinkling with some emotion Ruby had not yet seen from him. Ruby joined her hands behind her back and bowed her head, feeling shy all of a sudden.

"Hey… uh, Qrow," she said in a small voice. "Did you know you're my… uncle… kind of?"

"Hmm?" Qrow did a double take. "Oh, yeah, I guess I am!"

Ruby jumped and smacking him in the shoulder. "What do you mean you guess?! You're a spy, you know everything!"

"Well, I didn't have to be a spy to know about that."

Ruby grumbled under her breath. So this kind of thing was why General Ironwood didn't like Qrow? Yeah, she could kinda see where he was coming from now.

"How did you find out?" he asked. "Did Taiyang tell you?"

"No, my spirt was in turmoil because Avatar Ozpin knew, but I didn't know, which was really confusing and caused me an actual headache. So we went through some memories of his and through that I realized who my father was, and also that Yang is my sister."

Qrow blinked a few times, then crossed his arms. "Huh. That really puts my spy work to shame."

"Never mind that!" Ruby threw her arms up. "Where are they? Yang and her – my dad? I wanna talk to them."

"They're around." Qrow shrugged. "Yang's doing her thing, and Taiyang's dealing with it. I'm sure you'll find them sometime."

Ruby nodded. She was sure Qrow knew more, but she didn't want to bother him with these questions.

"This was a nice chat, kiddo, but I gotta go rest up," he said. "We can talk more about this tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Ruby repeated, thinking he had made a mistake.

"Yeah. I'll be right beside you the whole way." Qrow raised an eyebrow. "What, you think I'm an irresponsible uncle or something?"

* * *

"Do you hear that?" Blake asked, hanging her sheathed sword around her torso. "I think this is it."

Yang stepped past with her eyes close, focusing on the sounds around her. It started low, but gradually grew louder and louder, until it was impossible to ignore.

War drums.

"Yeah, today's the day," Yang said. "You still with me?"

"As long as you make sure I don't end up fried by the end of the day." Blake nodded. "Let's go find the Fire Lord."

* * *

Mercury was woken very rudely by a kick to the stomach. He doubled on the ground and looked up, preparing to curse out at whoever had dared do that do him – which, of course, was Emerald.

"Get up, you lazy slug," she said. "We're going right now."

The news made him forget the pain. He almost thanked Emerald. Almost.

"Finally?" He jumped to his feet. "It's about time."

"I wouldn't complain so loudly if I were you," Emerald warned.

"Oh, let him be, Emerald," Cinder's voice came from outside the cave. "Even _I_ was getting bored of waiting."

She strut back inside, having ditched her 'borrowed' Earth Kingdom dress. She now wore a brown vest with a short undershirt beneath it, skintight grey pants and a pair of combat boots. Her eyes seemed to glow in the relative darkness of the cave.

"I like the look!" Mercury said, giving her two thumbs-up.

"Of course you do." Cinder smirked. "Now, my friends… Are you ready to make history?"

* * *

Ruby closed her eyes. She didn't need her sight to know the Fire Nation army was approaching. She was still a novice in sensing through the earth, but right now, she felt like she was in a never-ending earthquake.

She had left early in the morning, before the others had woken up. She knew saying goodbye to them would only end in them either following her despite her wishes, or finally convincing her to stay. As much as it hurt her, leaving in the sly had been the best choice.

General Ironwood directed her to the fifth bridge going south, which would be one of the first to get to engage the Fire Nation, if everything went as planned. There were a dozen earthbenders alongside her. They had built some fortification over the past weeks, which would help them immensely in the coming fight.

Qrow arrived a little later, carrying his scythe on his shoulder. "Heya, kiddo," he said. "Ready to show them who's boss?"

"You can bet on it!" Ruby exclaimed.

"That's good," another person said beside her. "So am I."

Ruby turned to look and almost threw herself at the Rift when she saw Pyrrha, grinning guiltily

"But you…" Ruby rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't imagining things. "Pyrrha, you can't be here! We talked about this!"

"Did we?" Pyrrha tapped her fingers on her chin. "I can't seem to remember agreeing to anything…"

"Come on, Pyrrha, this is serious." Ruby frowned. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"Ruby, the Earth Kingdom is my homeland. I'm not going to run away when it needs me most," Pyrrha said. "But, if you want me to go… move me. Consider it a test. If you pass, I'll go. If you don't, you're stuck with me."

She spread her arms out. Ruby eyed her suspiciously for a moment, then shoved her with all her might. Pyrrha didn't budge an inch.

"This is very unfair," Ruby muttered.

"The solution was to move the earth beneath me," Pyrrha said. "See? You still need me."

"Hah!" Qrow chortled. "I like her style."

Ruby groaned. "Pyrrha, I want you to know that Weiss was wrong about you being my favorite."

Pyrrha shrugged. Upsetting Ruby was a small price to pay if it meant protecting her and the people of the Earth Kingdom.

The group waited in silence, even as the Fire Nation grew closer and closer, the details on their banners and their soldiers' armors becoming noticeably. Through the hills and the plains, they swarmed in like ants, followed by gray rolling machines that spewed smoke and fire.

Thirty minutes to the clash. Fifteen. Ten. Five. Soon, the exchange of fire and earth would begin, and later, iron would ring against iron.

Or not. The war drums stopped at the same time the Fire army did. Silence reigned in the battlefield as the two sides stared at each other.

"Why have they stopped?" Ruby whispered. "Qrow? …Uncle?"

She pulled on his hand, but he didn't reply. Ruby realized something was very wrong when she saw the absolute confusion in his always-confident gaze.

And suddenly, the earth shook. If before she had felt she had been in an earthquake, now it was like the world itself was breaking to pieces. Pyrrha gasped, sensing something Ruby hadn't yet. The earth shook again and again and again, each tremor worse than the last. And then she saw it.

A Grimm unlike any she had seen before, a gigantic turtle-like creature marching through the ranks of the Fire Nation, forcing the soldiers to dodge its house-sized feet. Its torso was protected by a shell which was round at the bottom, and perfectly flat at the top. It reared out its head, roared, and continued forward. Its stomps shook Ruby to her core. When it got close, it blotted out the sun, casting a shadow over them.

It stopped, then slowly lowered itself, its limbs bending under its weight, shell almost touching the ground…

"Oooh, crap…" Qrow said.

The Grimm jumped forward, shattering the earth where it had launched from. Ruby screamed, at first in horror when she thought it would land at the other side of the Rift and wreak havoc, then in relief when she realized it wouldn't make the distance and fall straight into the abyss.

But it didn't. Its length was just enough so that it would fall the first meters from the top of the Rift, then stop, stretching itself between the two sides. Its shell ended up just above ground level.

And just like that, in an area equivalent to fifty bridges combined, the Rift was closed. The war drums started again, and the Fire Nation sprinted forward.


	30. The Turning Point

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Ten: The Turning Point**

* * *

Ruby saw the Fire Nation crossing the Rift across the turtle's back, the sky turning black and red and yellow as arrows, spear and bolts of fire flew through the air. Soldiers fell from both sides, the ones advancing and the ones holding ground on the Earth Kingdom's side.

Yet the whole world was silent to her. Everything was… falling apart. Every plan, every act of courage and sacrifice. Just like that. And she could only watch as it happened.

Until suddenly her ears exploded with sound as she was shoved forward, having to grip her staff in both hands so it wouldn't slip her grasp.

"Come on, kiddo, get yourself together!" Qrow yelled, stepping forward. "The plan hasn't changed! Hold this position for as long as you can! We still have the advantage of them funneling in over that Grimm!"

None of the Earth soldiers said a word about him not being in any authority to give them orders. In a situation like this, all that mattered was standing together and strong. They raised pillars of earth and rock and began their efforts to thwart the Fire Nation's advance on their bridge.

Ruby felt Pyrrha touch her in the shoulder. "So, do we make a stand here?" she asked. "Or shall we take the fight to them?"

Ruby looked at her, then her uncle. Qrow smiled knowingly and took his own scythe off his shoulder. She held her chin up high and said, "Let's stop those firebending jerks."

* * *

Unprepared, the Earth army had no chance to stop the Fire Nation from pouring into the other side of the Rift. The firebenders plowed through their hastily formed first line of defense and started to advance, slowly but steadily, brushing off their enemies' attempts to slow them down.

But James Ironwood had not been granted the rank of General lightly. He didn't let the Fire Nation's unexpected – and terrifying – tactic shake his soldiers' morale. In ten minutes, he had formed a stable line of defense, one that prevented the Fire Nation from surrounding them but still allowed a measured retreat.

Weiss found herself at the frontlines of said line of defense, her waterbending catching the Fire soldiers that approached in her direction off-guard. It was just the distraction her allies needed to fight safely and effectively. Jaune certainly appreciated that.

"Hiya!" he yelled, swinging his sword upwards, slicing his current opponent's spear in two. The Fire soldier looked at him and blinked, then fell unconscious as someone else bonked him in the side of the head with the blunt end of a sword. "Heh! Never get distracted in combat!"

"Oh, will you be quiet?!" Weiss flickered her wrist, batting three soldiers aside with a water tendril. She turned her head to look at him. "You would be hopeless without me."

Instead of answering, he raised his sword beside her head, scaring her half to death. She heard a clang, then saw an arrow fall to the ground.

Jaune winked. "You were saying?"

"I knew that was coming," Weiss muttered. "But thanks anyway."

"Don't sweat it, we're in this together," he said, hopping back a bit, preparing for the next wave of attackers. "I only hope Ruby and Pyrrha are doing as well as us."

"One's the Avatar, the other's a metalbender," Weiss pointed out. "They'll be fine."

She was assuring him as much as she was herself, of course. No matter how capable her friends were, she was still worried sick. It was hard to keep herself from launching into the Fire Nation to try and find them.

"Hey, Weiss. Don't worry," Jaune said, touching her arm. "Remember what I said the other day, about Ruby?" He opened a little smile. "She always pulls through."

It was true, she thought. Ruby always pulled through.

Weiss turned her full attention to the Fire Nation and raised her arms, gathering all the nearby water to her disposal.

* * *

"I'm not seeing things, am I?" Blake asked, looking back over her shoulder. "That… was a giant Grimm."

"Yup," Yang said, her expression disgusted one second, then enraged the next. "That was giant freaking Grimm, and it didn't just _show_ up here by chance."

Yang shook her head, then pulled Blake by the wrist, fighting against the flow of the Fire Nation. Fortunately, nobody had confronted them yet. Either she wasn't as easily recognizable as she thought she was, or the soldiers just couldn't care to fight their banished princess right now.

"Do you know where your mother is?" Blake yelled, speeding up her pace.

"She's probably hanging behind the army, coordinating the advance. She's not the type to lower herself and fight _weaklings_. Her words, not mine," Yang replied. "She must have launched that plan with the Grimm herself."

"You think the Grimm is under her control?" Blake asked, astonished. "How is that possible?"

"Another question to add to the list."

Yang wasn't afraid. Infiltrating the army in the middle of a huge battle, sneaking past her own countrymen which would capture her at first sight any other day… Frankly, her life had been so hectic for so long, that was just part of the norm.

The word _fear_ didn't do justice to what she was feeling. There was something inside her kicking and screaming, commanding her to turn back, run away and hide. Because, as determined as she was, she didn't know what was about to happen.

Would they fight? Would they talk? What would her mother say? What would _she_ say?

Her world was about to change, and she had a feeling it wouldn't be for the best.

"There," Blake said, overtaking her and nodding to the right. "Noisy. Noisi _er_. Can't think of a better lead."

"If you say so." Yang changed course, letting go of Blake's wrist and raising her fists.

"What are you doing?" Blake asked, grasping her sword behind her back.

"Making my grand entrance!"

Yang dashed forward and thrust out her fists, launching a bolt of fire, forcing the quicker soldiers to dodge and blasting away the slower ones. Spears and swords were raised in her direction, but she spun once, creating a wall of fire around herself and Blake, discouraging any attacks.

"Is this really necessary?" Blake asked.

"Maybe not," Yang said. "But you know what they say about war. Half of it is fighting…"

She jumped through the fire, slamming her knee against a soldier's breastplate and knocking him down. As she landed, Yang dragged her right foot in a semicircle in front of her, launching away the soldiers barring her advance with a shower of flames. She faced the remaining two men, her gaze unwavering, holding her fists at the ready…

They looked at each other and nodded, then ran away in opposite directions. Yang beat her hands together, smiling smugly. "… and the other half is showing off."

Blake stopped beside her, lowering her sword. Behind her lay a trail of fallen soldiers. "I've never heard anyone say that. _Never_."

"Of course you haven't, it's a Fire Nation saying." Yang shrugged. "Just like 'violence is always the answer'!"

"Okay, that joke was good, I will admit," Blake said. "I'm a sucker for social commentary."

"Yeah, sure – whatever that means, I totally intended it that way."

With the immediate area around them cleared and the rest of the army avoiding them after the brief skirmish, they could now see a large tent was set there. It was red, its walls glowing as if there was a fire burning inside it. Yang took a step forward, then froze.

This was it. Now or never. The last opportunity to run away.

In the corner of her vision, she saw Blake looking at her, concern evident in her eyes. She had yet to sheathe her sword. Even now, she was ready to defend her.

Yang took a deep breath and willed herself to move forward…

The front of the tent opened, and someone stepped out. She tilted her neck upward, letting her dark hair cascade down her back, then lowered her head to fix her blood red eyes on Yang.

"Hello, daughter."

* * *

Ruby swung her staff with all her force, blowing a squadron of Fire Nation soldiers away with a gust of wind. She landed gracefully on the ground and leaned on her knee, catching her breath.

She had been in her fair share of battles over the last months, but none had been as taxing as this one. Even during the siege of the North Pole, her enemies had been scattered in tiny groups across the city, leaving her many opportunities to rest up before getting to work again. Today the soldiers came one after the other endlessly, like a wave that would only break long after she was down and out.

She looked around. Sometime during the whole mess, she had lost track of her uncle. Ruby knew Qrow was a competent fighter, so she didn't worry about him too much, but she would still have preferred if he was by her side.

Pyrrha had remained by her side, doing almost as much work as her, and it looked like she could go on for hours. Together, they were drastically lowering the rate the soldiers were getting on the turtle and stopping many from even getting that far. But Ruby knew doing that was only a temporary solution – they needed a better plan.

"Pyrrha!" she yelled, trying to get her attention. "Pyrrha, we need to- _weesh_!" Ruby ducked just in time to avoid the pointy end of a thrown spear. She looked up and saw two firebenders coming up on her, projectiles already prepared. She batted the first fireball away with her staff and jumped over the second one with the wind's assistance, then spun and launched a rush of air in their direction.

The firebenders held firm, then got close to each other and joined their hands. As one, they thrust forward, and the space between them and Ruby was filled with a fiery tornado. Ruby spun her staff in front of her, keeping the flames back. Incandescent tendrils slipped through, whipping any exposed skin. Her strength drained away steadily, but she kept up the effort.

How could she get out of this? As soon as she stopped spinning her staff, the fire would reach her. She could try to jump to the side to dodge, but that was risky. She couldn't see any water around for her to use. There was nothing she could…

Oh. Earthbending.

Ruby steeled herself and stomped on the ground with one foot. She felt the earth reverberate in all directions, and in her mind's eye, saw the two soldiers locked in position just as she was. She stomped again, causing a spire to burst from beneath them, knocking them apart.

The fire stopped. Ruby turned sideways and slid towards the soldiers, flicking her ankle to the right. Another spire came out of the ground and hit the soldier on the right, launching him against his partner. While they were falling, Ruby jumped over them and swung her staff, slamming them to the ground with a burst of air and knocking them out.

Ruby landed and breathed out, proud of herself. She turned to call for Pyrrha and tell her how her training was already paying off, but she was gone. Ruby's blood ran cold. Had she moved so far away, or had Pyrrha been dragged somewhere else by the raging battle?

There was no time to wonder. The best thing to do if she wanted to get herself and Pyrrha out of this mess was to end the battle once and for all – and that meant taking out that Grimm!

* * *

"I'll be honest. I didn't expect you to show up here."

The Fire Lord joined her hands behind her back, a slight smile gracing her features, but her eyes remained cold. Yang shrunk under their gaze. Suddenly, she felt herself shaking.

"You must have something important in mind to risk your life like this," her mother continued. Her eyes turned to Blake. "Your friend's, too."

Blake's grip on her sword tightened, but she didn't say a word. The Fire Lord stared at them for a moment more, then shook her head, as if she were disappointed.

"Well, then. Go ahead," she said. "What do you want, daughter?"

That was a question and a half, Yang thought. She had made extensive plans about what she would say if she wasn't attacked on sight, but it seemed her memory was failing her. And now she was here, and her mother was looking at her like she was a bratty child.

"I want answers." Yang said, putting to words the first coherent thought that came to her head.

" _Of course_ you do." The Fire Lord rolled her eyes. "Ask away. It's not as if I have anything more important to occupy me at the moment."

Yang wanted to find a retort for that, but her usual fiery self was gone. "I…" she started to speak, only for her voice to fail. "You… banished me."

"That's not a question, dear, but I'll answer anyway." Raven walked over to Yang, stopping just a couple meters in front of her. "Yes, I did banish you. You did betray your country, didn't you? Interfering with the Avatar's capture, standing against your own people during the siege of the North Pole… and, please, do remind me what happened to poor General Torchwick? The details of his demise are rather unclear even to this day, I'm afraid."

Yang lowered her head. She didn't regret anything she had done, but the words still stung. It was one thing to hear those accusations from the mouths of the likes of Torchwick or lowly soldiers, but her own mother? There wasn't just anger behind her voice, but disappointment too. Not that Yang knew her voice any other way.

"I do wonder why you did all those foolish things," the Fire Lord said. "No, scratch that. I know why. It was your father, wasn't it? He hasn't changed at all. A man out of his time…" She made a scene of looking around, then leaned towards Yang, staring her in the eyes. "Where _is_ dear Taiyang, anyway? Did you abandon him too?"

"I didn't abandon him!" Yang spat back immediately, clenching her fists. "He's… he's fine." She waited for a reply, but the Fire Lord's face remained as stony as ever. "Why are you doing all of this? What's the point of this war?"

"What's the point of any war, darling? It's to seize power. To subjugate your neighbors. Obtain control over _everything_ ," her mother said. "The strong rule the weak, and the Fire Nation has always been the strongest people on Remnant. It's about time we took what is rightfully ours."

Yang took a step back, flinching. She realized too late that letting her mother see how shocked she was had been a grave mistake, as her lips parted into a little, mocking smile.

"What? Were you expecting some speech about how we are doing this for some noble cause? That there was some reason behind this other than _the truth_?" The Fire Lord released a short string of laughter, cutting deep into her. "Please. You cannot be that childish."

"But the Grimm-"

"The Grimm? Yes, I suppose they're a problem," the Fire Lord waved dismissively. "We will deal with them, as only we can do – not the Avatar. And we'll do it for ourselves, not the world."

"You can't…" Yang's shock was quickly turning to anger. "That's not the truth! Stop lying!" she yelled. "Just admit it! You're on a warpath because, unlike everyone else on the planet, you don't know how to deal with your jealousy! You're a lunatic who can't let go of-"

Her mother turned around too quick for her to react. Pain flared on Yang's cheek. She stumbled back, eyes wide.

The Fire Lord lowered her hand. "You know, then," her mother muttered. "I suppose you had to find out eventually."

She stepped close, so close there was barely any space between them, and locked Yang's wrist in an iron grip. She pulled her up, eyes hovering just above her.

"You are absolutely right," she spoke, her voice filled with hatred like never before. "I. Am. Livid. Or I _was_. The anger is more of an… aftertaste nowadays, but it _is_ still there." She smiled. "Let me tell you, when I found out… It took everything in me not to burn that scoundrel father of yours to a crisp. I had to find somewhere else to release that anger…"

"It was such a _good_ day. One of my best, I have to admit. I only wish I had been more thorough. When I learned the Avatar was a little airbender girl, with red hair and silver eyes… that she had escaped my wrath…" The Fire Lord clucked her tongue. "Let's say the aftertaste made a _resurgence_."

"And now, as I look at you, shivering and whining like a child…" Her eyes narrowed. "I always knew you were weak, but at least I hoped you would be _somewhat_ useful. That you would continue the bloodline, at least. Be a good little doll. But just the thought of that disgusts me now." She paused, looking thoughtful for a moment. "I suppose that is no surprise. You've always found a way of doing that to me."

She let go, and Yang fell to her knees, crumbling like a house of cards. She tried to keep the tears from flowing, but it was useless. Hearing her mother turn around and scoff only made it worse.

"Now get out of my sight. I don't want to see your face ever again. Executing you would be more trouble than you're worth."

Slowly, Yang raised her head, wrestling her shaking to a minimum, and clenched a fist. She started to raise her arm, glaring at the back of her mother's neck.

A fireball came from somewhere behind her, aimed directly at the Fire Lord. Just as it was about to connect, she turned around and stopped with the palm of her hand, the flames ebbing between her fingers.

Yang saw someone's legs pass beside her, then heard a familiar voice.

"Fire Lord Raven, in the name of the Earth Kingdom and everyone on Remnant," her father spoke. "I challenge you to an Agni Kai!"

* * *

The Fire Nation was advancing as fast as before, but the good news was that the Earth Kingdom was holding its ground just as well. They had had to retreat a time or two to close the gaps left by their most exhausted or fallen compatriots, but aside from that, the fight was going well.

It was only a matter of time, of course. This was a war of attrition, and the Fire Nation had the superior numbers and weaponry. They would win eventually. But, would that be worth it? By the time the battle was over, the army would be in no shape to march to Vale, not for a long time. By then, the Earth army would rise to resist again.

At least that was what Weiss hoped. She had been trying to be more optimistic lately, but situations like this were the real hurdle on the road for her.

"Want to take a break?" Jaune asked, panting. "We can spare some ten minutes. I'll cover for you."

"Yes, with your amazing waterbending skills." Weiss shook her head tiredly. "No. I won't retreat until it's over."

"Aren't you too important to be captured?"

"Yes, and so are you," she replied quickly. "It's all a matter of perspective."

Jaune tilted his head dubiously, trying to decipher the meaning of her words. Weiss kicked herself mentally. Exhaustion always made her much too honest.

"Don't think too much of it," she urged. "Eyes on the enemies."

"Oh, right." Jaune raised his sword halfway, then did a double take. "Wait, did you mean-"

An arrow buried into his left thigh. Jaune screamed, then suddenly stopped, all the air from his lungs releasing at once.

A second arrow, straight into his chest.

Weiss yelled, grabbing him before he fell. The earthbenders around them erected a wall to protect her, yelling things at her that she only barely registered – the whole world seemed to have been reduced to Jaune's ghostly face and the red that spread from his chest.

Gritting her teeth, Weiss dragged him away from the battlefront and laid him down gently on the ground. She kneeled beside him, covering her mouth with her hands.

What was she supposed to do? Get the arrows out? What if they broke? What if the wood splintered inside him and she made it worse? Was he supposed to be laying down? The flow of blood, wouldn't it make it worse? What if-

"You stupid… stupid princess!" she shouted hoarsely. "Useless! You're useless! _Do something_!" Her throat stung with a sharp pain. The jarring sensation caused her to stop, suddenly hyperaware of her surroundings. "Do something…"

Weiss raised her hands and wrapped them around the arrow sticking out of Jaune's chest. She was trembling like mad, but she took a deep breath and persisted. With a grunt, she tightened her grip on the arrow and broke it off, then took hold of the splintered half still buried and ripped it out. She pressed her hands against the wound, ignoring the blood, turning her eyes to the sky, ignoring the blood, ignoring the blood…

The blood!

Not thinking, she jumped to her feet and shook her hands, her stomach turning violently. She took all the water from her canteen and splashed it on her hands without a care for wasting any of it. Still, the red didn't fade. She brought the water back from the ground and spun it around her hands, trying her hardest just to…

"What are you doing?" she asked herself suddenly. "Do you _want_ him to die?!"

Weiss kneeled again and pressed her hands against his chest. It hadn't been too long, right? It wasn't that big of a mistake. She had just freaked out, it was understandable, anyone would do that under the-

Jaune gasped. Weiss yelled, launching herself away from him. He sat up and blinked twice, then looked at her.

"…Did you say I'm too important to be captured?"

Weiss ignored, her eyes trailing down to his chest. After a while, he followed her stare.

"Oh."

The wound had closed. It was if it had never existed in the first place.

* * *

Ruby stopped before the edge of the Rift after clearing the area around her of soldiers. She wasn't far from the Grimm. She could jump down and glide to it. Nobody would be able to shoot her down there. But how would she actually kill it?

That wasn't important for now. She would figure it out when she got to it. First she needed to make her way there safely. Ruby turned and ran back, building speed, then started to turn back…

Her momentum was reversed suddenly by the sole of a metal boot against her right shoulder. Ruby collapsed painfully and rolled on the ground. Grunting with effort, she slammed a hand against the rocky soil, burying her fingers in it and bringing herself to a halt.

She looked up. Her silver-haired assailant was grinning at her, tapping his boots together as if distracting himself. She opened her mouth to yell at him, but then someone touched her in the shoulder.

Before she could turn around completely, Ruby felt fingers jabbing her lightning-fast in a dozen different places. She wobbled in place for a moment before pain exploded throughout her body – but it was only an instant, and then only felt numb.

Ruby looked up at the green-haired girl who had attacked her. "That _hurt_. Rude!"

She got only an apathetic look in response. Ruby grinded her teeth angrily and swung her staff to blow the girl away – but nothing happened. She blinked twice before looking down at her staff.

"She's all yours, Mercury," the girl said, walking away.

Ruby turned around to look at her first attacker, who was slowly approaching her, a wicked smile on his lips.

"Woah, slow down! Let's take a moment to talk, guys!" Ruby raised her hands amicably. "You do know who I am, right? Ruby, the Avatar? P-people say I'm adorable! You don't wanna hurt someone like that!"

"Actually, you're the type of people I like hurting the most," Mercury said. "Please, do keep talking."

His kick came deceptively fast, connecting with her chest and taking the air out of her lungs. Ruby struggled to regain her balance. She was so used to moving in tandem with her airbending, it was disorientating to not have it all of a sudden.

Mercury laughed. "Is this really the famed Avatar? Look at her, she can't even stand properly!" He looked at his companion. "See, I didn't even need you, Emerald. It was overkill."

"Yeah, sure." Emerald rolled her eyes. "You would _totally_ trash the Avatar in a fair battle. Now get to it."

"I thought the boss wanted to do the honors, but since she's lagging behind…"

Mercury kicked again, this time hitting her in her right arm. Ruby yelled in pain and fell to her knees. She looked around, trying to find a way to escape, but everywhere she looked were soldiers she couldn't face without her bending. Besides, she doubted she would even make it that far…

Mercury walked to her, stopping just before her. His smile creeped her out. Was this how she would go? Not by the Fire Lord's hands, not overwhelmed by Grimm, not surrounded by loved ones decades after saving the world… Just some guy who she could have defeated without a thought if she had been prepared.

Man, life really sucked sometimes.

"Do I get any last words?" she asked, trying to buy time. For what, she didn't know. She just didn't want to go. There was so much for her to do yet.

Mercury opened his mouth to answer. Suddenly, an arrowhead pierced his shoulder from behind, then his two arms and the side of his belly. A woman appeared behind him, stretching her head over his shoulder.

"She won't be needing them, I think."

The woman pulled the arrow from his shoulder and shoved him to the ground beside Ruby, then nocked the retrieved projectile on her bow and pointed it at Emerald.

"What the hell?!" Emerald shouted. "Why are you attacking us?!"

"Oh, Emerald. I'm so sorry." The stranger smirked. "But you didn't _really_ think I was going to kill the Avatar, did you?"

The woman let go of the arrow. Emerald went down screaming, clutching her leg.

Ruby's savior walked to her and offered a hand. "Let's go, Avatar. It's not safe here."

"Who are you?" Ruby asked. "Wait. I remember you, from the-"

"The name's Cinder Fall. We can talk more later," the archer urged. "First, I need to get you to safety."

Ruby took her hand and stood up. She looked at Cinder's face curiously, then screamed in warning when she saw a fireball coming straight at them.

Cinder raised her arm, and the fire passed around them harmlessly and faded.

"Wait, you're a firebender?!" Ruby yelled, backing away. "Why are you-"

"Yes, I am a firebender. It doesn't matter right now - you need to trust me!" Cinder exclaimed, holding her hand out again. "Let's go!"

Ruby screamed in frustration, then took her hand. Cinder nodded and started running towards the Rift, dragging Ruby with her. The Avatar blinked, realizing she had made a _huge_ mistake.

Before she could do anything about it, Cinder jumped, bringing her along. Ruby hugged her for dear life and closed her eyes. Strangely, she didn't feel them falling for long.

She opened her eyes and saw Cinder was releasing a constant stream of fire through her hands, and they were now floating slowly to the other side.

"This… is… awesome!" Ruby shouted excitedly. " _You_ are awesome! Oh, by the way, I'm Ruby!"

"Yes." Cinder raised an eyebrow at her. "I am aware."

* * *

For a long while, they just looked at each other. Him, brave, defiant, righteous. Her, haughty, doubtful, cold.

And then she spoke. "Well, then. _Taiyang._ " She turned around fully. "I didn't think you had it in you to stand up to me. You _are_ capable of change, after all."

"I'm not here to talk about me. I'm not here to talk at all, actually," Taiyang said. "Answer my challenge."

"Sure, but what are the conditions?" Raven asked. "If you win…?"

"You call off the invasion and let me and my daughter leave unharmed," he answered. "If you win, you can do whatever you want with me."

"Oh, I don't want anything to do with you. _But_ … proving my superiority alone sounds like a just reward."

"Suit yourself."

The Fire Lord walked back, stopping just before her tent, then turned to face him again. Taiyang took a deep breath and looked at his daughter.

"Dad…" Yang said. "You don't have to do this."

"This has been a long time coming, sweetie," he objected, then looked at Blake. "Hey, can you make sure she doesn't get hurt? Kids are so delicate."

Blake nodded, then pulled on Yang's arm. The blond resisted for a while, but eventually let herself be pulled away to a safer distance.

Taiyang turned to face his wife. Ex-wife, kinda. His Fire Lord. Well, not anymore technically. Everything was very complicated.

She launched the first attack, a weak fireball that he deflected easily. A test, he knew. Or some kind of cruel joke, in her vision. Probably the latter.

He slid forward, conjuring a fiery whip with a diagonal sweep of his leg. Raven stepped aside, letting the attack connect with her tent, which was set aflame in an instant. She didn't bat an eye.

Her next move had much more effort behind it, a series of streams and projectiles that had him dashing around at top speed to avoid them. When she was done, he righted himself and looked. She hadn't broken a sweat.

Time to get serious.

Without warning, Taiyang performed two kicks which sent powerful fireballs her way, then while they were on route, set his fists aflame and sprinted at her. She deflected the projectiles, then slid to the right just in time to dodge a fiery uppercut.

He didn't let her regain the initiative, sending punch after punch at her. Half of them she managed to dodge, but the rest she was forced to block, and he knew that stung, even for a firebender of her caliber. Not letting her get comfortable, he started to mix in kicks, and then elbows and knees, keeping her on her toes.

Eventually, he threw a punch with too much force, and she ducked under it. Exposed, he couldn't do anything when she grabbed his arm and hauled him over her head, then threw him down. Taiyang braced against the ground and started to rise, only to be knocked away by a blast.

Now _she_ was getting serious.

Her eyes burning, Raven clapped her hands, unleashing a wide burst of flames towards him. Unable to dodge, Taiyang could only protect his face with his arms and withstand the pain.

Before he knew it, she was upon him, connecting a punch to the side of his skull. Taiyang let the impact of the attack push him upward and to his feet, then slid backward. Raven didn't let up, jumping at him with her a fiery kick. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed her boot, his fingers burning, and pushed her down.

Raven stopped the fall with her hands and spun, making a ring of fire with her legs that grew as it got farther from her. Taiyang once more had to block with his arms, but this time he didn't let her catch him off-guard, quickly lowering them so he could see again.

Of course, she had predicted that and was now standing a safe distance away, two fingers held above her head. Screaming, she launched the lightning bolt at him. He held out his fingers just in time to catch it, but the impact sent him back nonetheless, making trails in the dirt.

Taiyang looked up and sent the lightning right back at her. She caught it and redirected it to the sky with her other arm. Raven watched it disappear amongst the clouds, then looked at him again.

"Old dog, old tricks," she said. "I don't suppose you have anything new to show me?"

"Actually, there is something," Taiyang said. "I wouldn't call it a trick, though."

He dashed at her, and she let him approach unobstructed. He swung a punch towards her head, but stopped just before it connected, then just stared at her. Raven met his gaze emotionlessly.

Suddenly, he started shouting at the top of his lungs, and fire came bursting out of his mouth. Raven held a hand in front of her, diverting the barrage, then covered his mouth with it.

"Cute."

She elbowed him between the shoulder and the neck, forcing him to kneel, then turned him around and produced a flaming blade from her hand.

"I don't have any qualms about killing you," Raven said. "Truthfully, I would have done it years ago, but I knew you were still holding back on me. Sweet, sweet Taiyang, making a show of being a good man, while inside you're as rotten as I am." Her eyes wavered, her voice dropping to a whisper. "You made me this way, of course. I should thank you for that."

"You don't mean that. I know you too well, Raven," Taiyang said. "And you know I love you. Always have – still do. That's why I held back." He paused. "I am sorry."

"The sad part is…" Raven sighed. "I believe you."

She raised the blade in preparation. Yang screamed and lunged forward, but Blake stopped her. He looked at his daughter and winked. If he was going out, he would do it with a smile on his face, and let that be his final lesson to her.

Raven leaned down and whispered in his ear. His gaze hardened. She raised her blade.

She never brought it down. An object came soaring through the air – a knife, a throwing star? – and buried into her arm. Raven stepped back, her blade fading, and looked at her bleeding injury.

From the surrounding army came Qrow, dashing towards her, swinging his scythe. "Sister! Am I late for the family dinner?!"

Raven screamed furiously, jumping out of his reach. Qrow looked at Taiyang and bonked him lightly in the side of the head.

"Go, and take your daughter with you," he said. "I am _not_ saving you a third time."

Taiyang didn't hesitate to obey, getting up and running for Yang. He grabbed her by the shoulders and dragged her away, knocking away any soldiers that tried to stop them. Blake followed close behind, sword fast at work.

Qrow stopped before his sister, shaking his head slowly. She looked up at him, eyes full of disdain.

"You can't beat me, Qrow," she said. "You might be an arrogant bastard… but you know you can't."

"Oh, certainly!" Qrow raised his scythe. "But who said anything about beating you?"

* * *

Pyrrha grabbed the side of the Rift, gradually stopping her descent. She looked up. The sun was blotted out by the figure of the giant Grimm. Good. She was right she wanted to be.

She tapped the rocks with her knuckle, sensing the weak spots in the earth. She had to be careful about what she did next. Destroy too much, and she risked causing a chain reaction that could take out too many soldiers – enemies and allies alike – and send her falling to her certain doom.

Not nerve-wracking at all. Just everyday stuff.

"Come on. Don't panic, Invincible Girl," she whispered to herself. "Yep. That's your name! Here. We. Go!"

She punched the wall, then felt it rumble as the impact spread and caused millennium-old formations of rock to get loose and separate, sand slipping through, cracks forming, plates grinding together…

The rockslide started from the very top of the Rift. Pyrrha released her breath and jumped to the side, grabbing the wall again where it was safe. Above, the Grimm's feet started to lose their hold. It had been just big enough to fit in before. As the Rift widened…

The turtle bellowed out a roar that lasted for a full minute. Pyrrha tried to turn away, but she was too close. Finally, the beast couldn't hold on anymore, and it went plummeting down, disappearing in the depths of the Rift. Some Fire Nation soldiers went along with it, the ones who hadn't been smart enough to get off when it had started screaming.

Pyrrha allowed herself to smile in victory, then started climbing back up.

* * *

With their escape route suddenly gone, a great portion of the Fire Nation army was stuck on the wrong side of the Rift. They were quickly defeated by the Earth army.

General Ironwood wouldn't rest, though, at once getting to arrange groups of his most-rested soldiers at to assume posts at the bridges. His plan might have been ruined at first, but now it could work, and even better than before, with their enemies' number cut so dramatically.

Everyone was surprised, then, when they looked at the horizon and saw the Fire Nation retreating northeast, towards Atlas. The advance was over. In a day, they had stopped it, and with no great casualties.

Today's battle, many in the Earth army realized, was the turning point of the war.

They were winning, finally.

* * *

Ruby fell on her back, breathing hard, but relieved nonetheless. Never before had she appreciated the rocky soil of the Earth Kingdom so much. It was like a bed to her. So soft, she could fall asleep…

"Avatar," Cinder spoke above her. "I would appreciate it if you could assume a less compromising position."

"Huh?" Ruby leaned up. "Compromising position…?"

"You're on the ground. I have a bow," Cinder said matter-of-factly. "You can see how one might misinterpret the situation."

"And they don't even know you're a firebender yet!" Ruby added.

"Exactly."

Ruby jumped to her feet, but nearly fell on her face again. Her airbending was back! Just to be sure, she swung her staff a couple times. Yep, there it was!

"Ooh, my bending's back! Am I glad!" She sighed in relief. "Seriously, it is _so_ weird losing it like that."

"I'm lucky I haven't experienced that myself," Cinder said. "The technique works by attacking the pressure points of your body and blocking the chi, or energy, that is needed for bending. It's temporary, as you've just found out."

"Sounds neat." Ruby's eyes narrowed. "But how do you know about that?" She jumped back. "Wait! Were you friends with the people who attacked me?"

"We were… colleagues," Cinder corrected. "Not anymore. I no longer work for the Fire Nation."

Ruby hummed quietly. Cinder sounded sincere enough. And it wasn't like being a firebender instantly made someone bad. Yang and her father were firebenders. Heck, _she_ was a firebender, technically.

She could trust Cinder, for now. She was sure everyone would have an input on that later, anyway.

* * *

"I still can't believe you healed me like that," Jaune said. " _And_ that you said I'm too important to be captured!"

Weiss sighed. "You're not going to let that go, are you?"

She ignored his pleased humming and looked around the camp from where they were seated. There were soldiers being treated for their injuries, and the few dead being taken to a private location to be buried or cremated later. Some Grimm had tried to get some easy prey earlier, attracted by the negativity of war, but they had been repelled with ease.

And yet there was no sign of their friends. Weiss was starting to worry.

She almost yelled, then, when Ruby and Pyrrha appeared at the edge of the town, walking towards them. Weiss poked Jaune, drawing his attention. He smiled widely and stood up.

"Jaune!" Ruby yelled, jumping on him. "You didn't get your head cut off!"

"Yeah, I didn't!" Jaune exclaimed, just as cheerfull. "Wait, what?"

"Weiss!" Ruby jumped off him and stood in front of the princess for a while, then hugged her awkwardly. "I am, uh, very happy you are okay."

"You are such a weirdo," Weiss stated, patting her back once. "I am glad you are okay too."

"Ooh, did you guys know Pyrrha killed the Grimm?" Ruby asked, stepping back. "Seriously, is she _ever_ going to stop being awesome?"

"I just made him fall," Pyrrha said quietly, obviously embarrassed. "You could have done that."

Weiss tilted her head slightly. She supposed Pyrrha was right, but it was still an impressive feat. Everybody had just assumed the rocks had started to give under the Grimm's weight. This was a much… cooler explanation.

She broke from her thoughts when she noticed someone else standing nearby, a girl with raven hair and amber eyes, with a bow and quiver hung around her torso. Her eyes were darting from Weiss to Jaune repeatedly, as if she was trying to ascertain who they were.

"Oh, yeah. Guys, this is Cinder," Ruby said, sliding to the girl's side and poking her lightly in the arm. She seemed vaguely amused. "She saved me when my bending got disabled because my pressure points were attacked – whatever. Cinder's pretty awesome, is what I'm saying." Ruby paused. "Also, she's a firebender."

Weiss yelled incoherently and drew the water from her canteens, forming two tendrils on her hands. Jaune drew his sword and promptly hid behind her. After a bit of staring at the two of them, Pyrrha took out her shield and prepared to throw it.

Fitting in with their group was tricky business.

"Guys! Come on." Ruby frowned. "I told you Cinder saved me. You're going to scare her off."

Cinder gave her a dubious glance, then bowed her head towards Weiss and Jaune. "Don't worry about it. I understand why you would be jumpy around me," she said. "I know there's nothing I can say that will make you trust me completely, but I promise you I have no intention of harming anyone here."

"Then _why_ are you here?" Weiss asked. "Are you a spy? An infiltrator?"

"The Fire Lord in disguise?!" Jaune joined in.

"I used to work for the Fire Lord, but not anymore. Not after today," Cinder said. "I just want to help."

"I'll be the judge of that."

Everyone turned around. General Ironwood had his arms crossed, his eyes focused on Cinder and no else.

"…I suppose that's only fair," Cinder said. "Do with me as you please, General."

"Come with me."

General Ironwood walked off, and Cinder followed him obediently. Ruby waved after her, to which she only replied with a slight smile.

"Well that was weird," Jaune said. "Ruby, why do you only make weird friends?"

"Eh… it's an Avatar thing." Ruby shrugged.

"That woman is _not_ your friend," Weiss objected. "Not until we know exactly who she is."

"But friendship doesn't care about that…" Ruby muttered sadly. "I guess you've got a point, Weiss."

"Of course I do. When have I ever been wrong?" Weiss said. "Moving on. I am glad everyone got out of this mess okay. Things looked very bleak for a moment there, but we save the day in the end!"

Ruby frowned. They had 'won' when the Grimm had fallen, but the Fire Nation hadn't needed to retreat. They could have regrouped and tried to get to Vale on the other side of the Rift. So why had they retreated?

Oh, well. That was a question for another time. For now, she was just happy to be with her friends again. The future seemed so much brighter.

Without saying a word, she gathered Weiss, Jaune and Pyrrha together, then wrapped her arms around them in a hug. And, for a while, they stayed just like that.

* * *

Yang looked at the firewood.

The world was mostly silent around her. Her father was snoring at the edge of the camp, resting after his impromptu Agni Kai. Blake's breathing was softer, but she could hear her too. There were a few insects cricketing, and far away, Grimm howled, no doubt in pursuit of the retreating army.

The future seemed so much darker.

She took her fingers close to the firewood and snapped them. Again. Again. Again.

"Yang?" Blake sat up, rubbing her eyes drowsily. "Why aren't you asleep?"

Yang snapped her fingers again. Nothing.

"I can't firebend."


	31. Divides and Balance

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Eleven: Divides and Balance**

* * *

Ruby woke up to the sight of a cloudless bright sky and the rattling of metal and wagons. She sat up on the tree branch she had spent the night on and looked around. The town-turned-war-encampment was bustling with life. Soldiers and civilians were working together to make more permanent stations for the army, so they could stand guard in case the Fire Nation tried to attack again.

It was unlikely. Before she had gone to sleep, Ruby had been told all the bridges on the Rift were going to be collapsed. If they tried another advance towards Vale, the Fire Nation would have to go all around the Rift, and with their reduced numbers after the battle, it was unlikely that they would succeed.

The war hadn't ended. Far from that. But for the first time in fifteen years, the Fire Nation had suffered a terrible defeat, and the Earth Kingdom stood stronger than ever because of it.

Ruby smiled. She had been so worried about the battle, but everything had worked out in the end. She was glad she had played a part in the victory, even though she had come very close to dying.

She shook her head a little to fix her hair, adjusted her cloak, then dropped from the branch and floated to the ground. Her friends' tents had been set up near to her tree. It was wise of them to stay close to each other, even with so many allies nearby.

Jaune was the only one already awake, which was a big surprise. Weiss was very peculiar about her daily schedule, always waking up at the same exact time every day, but today she seemed to be sleeping well after that. Pyrrha wasn't so strict, but she generally got up soon too.

Jaune was sitting in the middle of their little camp, mixing something inside a cauldron above a campfire. He was very concentrated on his task, the tip of his tongue was poking out of the corner of his mouth.

Ruby walked over to him and looked over his shoulder. "What's that?" she asked cheerfully.

Jaune jumped and spun around, stopping just short of smacking her head with his spoon. "Ruby! Don't sneak up on me like that! I could have… uh… killed you or something!"

"Oh. I'm sorry," Ruby blinked. "But I don't think you can kill me with a spoon."

"Never underestimate a good spoon," Jaune said sagely. "Good morning, by the way. I'm making soup."

Ruby's stomach growled loudly. "What kind of soup?"

"Meat soup!"

Ruby stared at him, trying to figure out whether he was joking. He looked very serious. And the soup did smell pretty meaty. Ruby grimaced and skittered away from the cauldron.

"Hey, don't knock it till you try it. It's my best recipe! I made it myself!" Jaune exclaimed, dismayed by her reaction.

"Uh… yeah, it does smell very… very good! Yep! That's definitely very, uh, exotic!" Ruby fought off the urge to vomit. "Too bad I'm a vegetarian."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about. Guess I gotta come up with a vegetable soup recipe for next time," Jaune said. "Oh, a messenger came by a little earlier. General Ironwood wants to see you. There's something important he needs to talk about with you, I think."

"Okay! I'll be going now, then!" Ruby said. She would have taken any excuse to get away from the meat soup. "See you later, Jaune."

She backed away fast, flashing him two thumbs-up. Jaune waved, then turned back to the cauldron.

"Hmm. Needs more water." He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "And more meat…"

* * *

Apparently, Ruby hadn't been the only one summoned by the General. When she got to his tent, she was surprised to find an old acquaintance seated next to the strategy table. Professor Oobleck, with his round spectacles and unkempt hair, was examining a pile of scrolls in front of him. There was a cup of steaming coffee next to the pile. Judging by how twitchy he was, it must have been refilled several times already.

"Bartholomew!" Ruby exclaimed. She tilted her head confusedly. The name had just burst out of her mouth on its own. "Sorry. I think Ozpin slipped through a little."

"Ah! Avatar Ruby!" Oobleck got up from his chair, nearly knocking it over, and shook her hand enthusiastically. "It's been too long, old friend."

"Right? It feels like it's been years since we first met!" Ruby giggled. "Uh, we can stop shaking now, I think."

Oobleck let go of her hand and pulled over another chair. He sat down, then gestured for her to do the same.

"What are you doing over here, professor? You said you were going back to Vale the last time we met, didn't you?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, I did say that, and yes, I did make a return to Vale. It was brief visit, however, just long enough to inform the Queen about you." His expression grew somber. "Unfortunately, my arrival at the capital was soon followed by news of the Fire Nation's advance. The Queen sent me here to provide James with my tactical expertise."

Ruby looked at him dubiously. "Tactical expertise?"

There was a rustle behind them. General Ironwood entered the tent and stepped around the table, then sat down on the other side, facing Ruby. "Why, yes. Professor Oobleck might not be a warrior in the battlefield, but you can search every corner of the world and you won't a tactician that can match his intellect."

"Hmm, yes, years of study have earned me that reputation. Decades!" Oobleck said. He glared mildly at Ironwood. "It's _Doctor_ , need I remind you."

"Of course." Ironwood smirked. "My sincerest apologies, friend."

Ruby looked at Oobleck curiously. _She_ had called him professor, yet he hadn't corrected her. She wondered why that was. Him and General Ironwood seemed like good friends, so it was a little strange that he didn't get a pass, while she did.

"Pleasantries aside, I called you here for a reason, Avatar," Ironwood said gravely. "It's a grave matter, and I thought you should be informed of it."

"Okay. Thank you, General," Ruby said. She looked at Oobleck. His eyes had returned to his scrolls, but she could tell he was still paying close attention.

General Ironwood leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and interlacing his fingers. "During the course of yesterday's battle, you were assaulted by what we assume were assassins contracted by the Fire Nation…"

"A clever maneuver," Oobleck interjected quickly. "A precise strike targeted at you, their most worrisome enemy, while you were preoccupied with winning a battle to decide the fate of the kingdom. To be frank, you were lucky to survive the encounter."

"Yes. But I would not call it luck. It was an outsider's unlikely help that saved you, Avatar," Ironwood said. "Cinder Fall, she calls herself. That's who we are discussing today."

Ruby nodded. If it hadn't been for Cinder, she definitely would have died during the battle – not only had she saved her from the assassins, but she had also transported her back to the Earth Kingdom's side of the rift while her bending was still blocked.

"Okay," Ruby said. "I like her. What's there to discuss?"

"You can't think of anything?" Ironwood's eyebrows shot up. "She is a firebender. We know, by her own admission, that she used to work for the Fire Lord. And that's _all_ we know about her."

"She claims she can help us win the war," Oobleck said. "Having worked with the Fire Lord, she could provide us with invaluable information."

"Well, then we should let her help us, right?" Ruby said. "If she says she wants to help, I don't see the problem. And it's not like we can afford to turn away an advantage like that."

Ironwood made a slight noise with his nose, then turned to look at Oobleck, as if he had been expecting her to say exactly that. Oobleck offered her a little smile. Suddenly, Ruby felt very uncomfortable.

"You are right that it's an offer hard to refuse," the professor said gently. "But we cannot trust Cinder Fall. She is Fire Nation. She could be anything from a spy to an assassin. Accepting her into our ranks would leave us terribly vulnerable."

Ruby frowned. "But… she might be Fire Nation, but that doesn't make her an enemy necessarily." She pointed out hesitantly. "I mean, unc- _Qrow_ is a really good ally, and he's the Fire Lord's brother!"

"We never accepted Qrow's help. He acted independently," Ironwood said. "In fact, if we didn't have so much trouble already fighting the Fire Nation, we would have dealt with him a long time ago."

"Wow. I bet he wouldn't like hearing that," Ruby said quietly. She couldn't help but feel offended for Qrow, and not just because he was her uncle. "You should have invited him here. He would have a lot to say, I think."

"He couldn't be here even if I wanted him to," Ironwood said. "Qrow has been missing since the battle. We think he was still at the other side when the bridges were collapsed. He might have been captured, or killed," he paused. "Or he might have rejoined his sister's side."

Ruby was so stunned by the news, she didn't even get angry by the general's implication. Qrow, missing? But he had evaded the Fire Nation for so long… He had been captured, surely. She refused to even think anything else until she got real evidence.

"Whatever has happened to Qrow, his absence should serve as a lesson," Oobleck said wisely. "We collaborated, even if at times it was out of our control, with an outsider with deep connections to the Fire Nation. He learned our secrets and gained the trust of many of our people. And now, he is gone, status unknown." He shook his head gravely. "I have nothing against the man, but I would be lying if I said this didn't cause me some concern."

"And that's why we can't trust Cinder Fall," Ironwood concluded. "She'll be moved to a prison far away from the capital and Atlas, away from her people and ours. We can't risk the safety of our kingdom, not when we have finally taken a step towards winning the war."

Ruby bowed her head. She didn't like what she was hearing, but she was neither a general nor a scholar. If Ironwood and Oobleck felt that they couldn't trust Cinder, she couldn't really disagree.

"Cinder Fall will be moved by dusk. If you wish, Avatar, you may speak to her before then," Ironwood said, standing up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, there's still much I must see about my troops."

He gave a quick nod, then left the tent. Ruby looked at Oobleck, and once again he smiled at her. Feeling small, Ruby sighed and left too.

* * *

The Battle of the Rift was over. Mostly.

There weren't soldiers fighting anymore. One nation had stood strong in the end, while the other retreated to prepare for another day's reprisal. The earth lay still. The only flames that burned were those of torches and bonfires.

But now the Grimm came in hordes, as it happens after every great human conflict. Hundreds of the dark creatures stalked through the countryside, scouring both ends of the Rift for lone prey. It was lucky for the refugees of the war that the Earth Army had settled nearby. But if one couldn't get to them in time…

Taiyang didn't have to worry about that. Or, more precisely, he couldn't afford to worry. He was sure there were people that could use his help in this mess, but he already had his hands full as it was.

Shaking his head slightly, he turned around and walked down the hill he had been watching the Rift from. Yang and Blake awaited at the bottom, both unusually quiet. Well, Yang at least. He had met Blake barely a day ago, but he could already tell she wasn't the type to talk much. Yang, on the other hand…

"Heya," he said loudly, tapping Yang in the back of her head with the knuckles of his left hand. "Whose funeral did I miss?"

"Huh?" Yang blinked, then looked at him and smiled. "What are you talking about? We're just waiting."

"Hmm." Taiyang peered at her suspiciously, then shrugged. "Alright then. So, here's the situation. Like I thought, there's a lot of Grimm running around over here. I'd bet my two shoes we'll find them until the west end of the Rift." He looked at Blake. "And keep in mind that I don't have _any_ replacement shoes."

Blake looked at him blankly for a moment, then nodded, as if to communicate she now understood the severity of what he was saying.

"If we wanna get to Vale in one piece, we'll have to be very careful," Taiyang said. "Blake, you know how to avoid Grimm, right?"

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't," she replied.

"Good. We'll do our best to avoid them," Taiyang continued. "But this is a huge stretch of Grimm-infested land we're talking about. We _will_ have to face some sooner or later. We need a plan for when that happens."

Yang turned away a little before speaking. "We could just run."

"Not a good plan. We're not gonna lose them, and we tire faster than any Grimm," Taiyang objected. "We're gonna have to fight. I'll do most of the work. Yang, you'll protect Blake."

"I can protect myself," Blake said, frowning.

"Yes, I assumed that," Taiyang pointed at the sword on her back. "I only say that because there's _a lot_ of Grimm around here. I'm not dismissing your ability to fight, but there's only so much you can do alone."

After a moment's hesitation, Blake nodded. She looked at Yang, her expression unreadable. Yang kept silent.

"Okay. Everybody understands their roles," he said. "Let's get going."

There was something was off. Something he was missing. He only hoped he found out what that was before it got them into trouble.

* * *

Ruby got back to her camp and found her friends sat around the fireplace. She grimaced when she saw Jaune drinking his meat soup with a gusto that was almost disturbing. Pyrrha was also drinking from her own bowl, though she looked very pained. She was probably doing it to be nice to Jaune, Ruby assumed.

Predictably, Weiss was far less kind than Pyrrha and was partaking in her own meal, a plate of fruit salad, while making regular and very loud statements about the look and smell of Jaune's 'masterpiece recipe'. Ruby made sure Jaune wasn't looking before approaching Weiss shiftily and poking her on the back.

"Gimme some, please," she whispered quickly.

Weiss opened her mouth to protest, but stopped when she noticed Ruby looking at the meat soup in horror. "Sure," she said, taking another plate from her bag and spilling half of her salad on to it. Ruby took it and began to munch down on it enthusiastically.

Ruby sat down, and finally Jaune and Pyrrha noticed she had returned. Pyrrha immediately set aside her bowl. "Hello, Ruby! How are you today?"

"'M fine," Ruby replied between bites.

"Really?" Pyrrha continued loudly, pushing her bowl even further away. "Let's talk about it!"

Jaune paused, his spoon hovering in front of his mouth. "But Pyrrha, it's lunch time."

"R-right." Pyrrha gulped, picking up her bowl again. "L-lunch time. _Wonderful_." She took a big sip with her spoon, her left eye twitching in agony.

Jaune hummed happily and resumed his meal.

Weiss shook her head. "I don't know who's worse," she said, turning to Ruby. "Him for being such a clueless dolt, or her for enabling him."

Ruby didn't respond. Her eating had slowed down to a more reasonable pace, and her mind was going back to what she had learned earlier in the day.

"Ruby?" Weiss called. "You're being awfully quiet."

"That's never a good sign," Jaune quipped. "Lunch time postponed. Group talk time."

He set his bowl down. Pyrrha did the same, barely holding back a happy squeal.

Ruby stopped eating. Suddenly, she wasn't hungry anymore. "Qrow is missing. They think he's been captured or something."

"Oh. That's… I'm sorry to hear that," Weiss said. "He seemed like a good man. A little difficult, but…"

"Yeah," Jaune frowned. "He taught me a lot."

Pyrrha looked at the two of them and shook her head. "Don't speak like that. He's not gone," she said. "I doubt someone like Qrow would go so easily. Like Ruby said, he's probably been captured. Or he might be messing with the Fire Nation. Who knows."

"Yeah, Pyrrha's right," Jaune said. "He is _the_ rebel, after all."

Ruby took a deep breath, then smiled a bit. She was still a little worried, but just talking her friends reassure her lifted a weight off her shoulders. She already thought Qrow was okay, but hearing someone else say it was what she needed to believe it.

"Is that what General Ironwood wanted to talk to you about?" Weiss asked.

"Uh, no. That just came up, sorta," Ruby said. "He wanted to tell me that they're keeping Cinder as a prisoner and sending her somewhere far away."

"Huh." Weiss shrugged. "I suppose that is to be expected."

"But, Weiss!" Ruby exclaimed, shocked by the triviality with which Weiss spoke. "Cinder saved me! And she _wants_ to help. They're being jerks!"

"Jerks? Really, Ruby?" Weiss raised an eyebrow. "She's Fire Nation. Not only that, she worked for the Fire Lord. She's the flesh and blood example of who we are fighting against. We can't trust her. You, of all people, should understand that."

Ruby flinched. Jaune looked away, though he didn't appear very pleased about the route the conversation had taken. Pyrrha crossed her arms, looking firmly at Weiss.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be insensitive. It's just…" Weiss raised a hand helplessly. "You know what I mean."

"…Yeah." Ruby sighed, getting up. "I do."

She walked to her tree and jumped to her branch, where she wrapped herself in her cloak. The camp was silent.

After a while, Jaune pointed at Pyrrha's bowl, then the cauldron with the soup. "More?"

Visibly shaking, Pyrrha extended her bowl.

* * *

"You need to tell him."

Blake didn't really want to say it. She liked Yang, and for the brief time they had known each other, had come to care for her. Even so, it was a brief time, not enough for her to feel comfortable with giving advice about something as personal as family. But with them being surrounded by hordes of Grimm on all sides, her inhibitions had to be thrown away, and she was forced to speak.

Yang didn't reply. She slowed her pace somewhat to match hers, turned her head to look, but didn't say a word. She then turned her gaze back to her father, who was farther ahead, making sure they didn't run headfirst into any Grimm.

"Yang," Blake insisted, speaking quietly so she wasn't heard by Taiyang. "Don't ignore me. You know I'm right."

"About what, Blake?" Yang asked brusquely. "Go ahead. Tell me."

" _Yang_. You can't firebend," Blake said. "You need to tell your father now, or you're going to regret it. We're all going to."

"I don't _need_ to do anything." Yang made a derisive noise with her nose. "You can protect yourself. You said that. And I'm not helpless without my bending."

"That's not it." Blake paused, searching for the right words to say. "Look, I'm not a bender, but I know it can't be easy to lose your bending. This isn't about us fighting the Grimm, it's about _you_. So go talk to him, right now."

Yang stopped and turned completely, leaning towards Blake. "I. Am. Fine." She held her gaze for a moment, then marched forward, leaving Blake behind.

Blake shook her head. She was frustrated, but more than that, she was sad for Yang. It was obvious she was avoiding the issue at hand, and that would come back to bite her later. If only Blake could have-

A cold sting on the back of her neck broke Blake from her thoughts. Instinct took over as she stopped and scanned the trees to their right. Just a little ahead, close to Yang, red dots shone menacingly in the darkness. She saw the glint of a sharp fang.

"Yang, watch out!"

Blake took off towards her friend, reaching for her sword. Yang turned around just in time to see an Ursa come at her from the woods and jump away, avoiding the deadly swing of a claw. She landed, dragging her right foot back on the soft soil while bending her left knee, assuming a battle stance. She yelled and thrust her arms forward.

Embers sputtered out of her fists and fizzled out. Yang froze, staring at the Ursa with wide eyes. The Grimm raised a claw to slash, but Blake took out her ribbon and whipped it towards the beast, wrapping it around its arm. Blake jumped and pulled on the fabric, launching herself towards the Ursa, then stabbed into its neck with her sword. The Grimm turned to smoke, and Blake landed back on her feet.

"Yang!" Blake yelled. "Snap out of it!"

But Yang didn't move, still staring at where the Ursa had just been. Blake spun around and got in front of her, standing between her and the other Grimm that were coming out of the woods.

Before the Grimm could get to them, a wall of fire surged from the ground in-between, halting their advance. Taiyang reached Blake and Yang, flames surrounding his fists.

"What the heck is going on here?" he yelled, looking between Blake and his daughter.

"Yang can't firebend," Blake said. She had given Yang a chance to explain it herself, but that time had passed.

Taiyang's eyes wavered. With one sweep of his legs, he collapsed the wall of fire onto the Grimm, incinerating them, then took hold Yang's wrist and ran, dragging her with him.

"Blake! Bring up the rear!" he shouted.

Blake followed him, keeping her sword and ribbon at the ready. "I thought you said we can't run from Grimm?"

"You're right, I did say that! Desperate times, desperate measures! Don't lose me!"

Blake did exactly as he said.

* * *

When General Ironwood had told Ruby that she was free to visit Cinder, he was probably only being polite, and would rather she didn't get any close to her. That was the conclusion Ruby reached when she started asking around the town for where Cinder was being held and only got half-answers from the soldiers. Why the General was so opposed to the idea, Ruby could only wonder.

It was only a couple hours before dusk when Ruby finally found what she was looking for, a little house at the edge of town surrounded by earthbender soldiers. She saluted them as she passed by them and only got confused looks in response. Shrugging, Ruby entered the house.

An officer sat in the only room in the house informed her that Cinder was being held in the cellar, and with some reluctance, he showed a trapdoor and opened it for her. Ruby walked down a little stairway and found herself in a dank dungeon lit only by a couple of torches on the walls. Towards the back were the steel bars which contained Cinder Fall.

The firebender was sat in a corner, eyeing her fingernails, but when she saw Ruby enter, she stood up and walked closer to the bars. Ruby approached hesitantly. As much as she hated it, what she had heard about Cinder from Ironwood, Oobleck and Weiss was getting to her now, and she couldn't stop from being nervous in her presence.

"Avatar," Cinder spoke, bowing her head slightly. "I was hoping you would visit me, but I didn't think you would."

"Call me Ruby," her voice quivered a little. Ruby took a deep breath, steadying herself. "Why were you hoping I would visit you?"

"Because I need your help," Cinder said simply, joining her hands behind her back.

"My help?" Ruby frowned. "Uh, I'm not breaking you out, if that's what you're asking."

Cinder smiled. "No, nothing like that." She began to pace, her steps ringing in the cellar. "I wasn't lying when I told you I want to help defeat the Fire Nation, but as I'm sure you already know, James Ironwood won't allow that. I think you're smarter than that."

"I did talk to the General, and he said you can't be trusted," Ruby said, crossing her arms.

"And why exactly can't I be trusted?"

"Because you're Fire Nation."

Cinder stopped pacing to stare at her, as if expecting her to elaborate. Ruby looked away, not being able to match her gaze.

"Is that how it is? I'm Fire Nation, so I can't be trusted. I am basically a monster, another type of Grimm, just waiting to attack at the first sign of weakness," Cinder said. "What happens when you win the war? When the Earth Army invades the Fire Nation, what will become of its citizens? I suppose they'll be cast aside like trash, because, after all, they _can't be trusted_."

"That's not what I mean!" Ruby protested. "I never said every firebender is bad."

"So what makes me different?" Cinder asked.

"You… you worked for the Fire Lord," Ruby said.

"And yesterday, I defied the order she gave me. I was supposed to kill you. Instead, I saved you."

Ruby closed her eyes. She couldn't remember ever having a conversation this difficult. It wasn't only that Cinder had a counter to everything she said, but also that Ruby didn't even fully believe in what she herself was saying. She _wanted_ to be convinced, but she knew that was careless of her.

"I might have worked for the Fire Lord, but I disagreed with her on a lot of things," Cinder said. "I am loyal to my nation, not to its ruler. Is that so hard to believe?"

"Listen. I _don't_ think you're a bad person," Ruby said. "I… I know a few people from the Fire Nation, and they're good people. More than good." She hesitated. "But it's not that simple to convince everyone. Like it or not, the Fire Nation is the enemy, and that's how people are going to see you. There's nothing I can do."

"You're the _Avatar_ ," Cinder stated, and Ruby was surprised to hear an anger behind her words. "You're the most powerful person in the world. Don't ever say there's nothing you can do."

Ruby stood speechless. That last phrase had hit a point, and now she felt the conversation had reached its end. How she felt about it was another matter altogether. She would need some time to think.

She went back to the stairs, but as she laid a foot on the first step, one last thing came to mind.

"Why now?" she turned to look at Cinder. "Why did you betray the Fire Lord?"

Cinder shrugged, as if that was the easiest question she had ever heard. "She crossed a line. I'll leave it to you to figure out what that was."

* * *

Hours passed. The sun began to set on the horizon. Grimm howled in the distance, and people went inside their houses as a precaution.

Ruby left her tree and raced to the edge of town, and there she found a group of twenty soldiers, as well as General Ironwood himself, leading Cinder into a metal wagon, her wrists cuffed behind her back. Before they could get her into the wagon, however, Ruby sped past the general and raised her staff, lifting dust behind her.

"Now wait just a minute!" she yelled. The soldiers stopped what they were doing. General Ironwood looked at her in surprise, then mild annoyance. Cinder smirked.

"Avatar," General Ironwood spoke. "I'm sorry. If I had known you wanted to see her off, I would have sent a messenger to summon you."

"I don't need a summon. I'm here anyway," Ruby said. "But I'm not here to see her off… because you're not sending Cinder away to some nasty prison."

The general's face went red, but he managed to contain his anger. "Avatar. I appreciate your help in our battles, and I'll always respect your perspective on things, but," he said slowly. Clearly, he was having a hard time measuring his words. "Well, frankly, you have no say in this. How we deal with our prisoners is Earth Kingdom business… not yours."

Ruby faced him, raising her head high. "That's not how any of this is supposed to work."

Ironwood blinked, confused by what he had just heard.

"Everyone keeps saying we can't trust Cinder because she's Fire Nation. But that's wrong, because it doesn't matter where she was born, or who she served, or what she has done in the past," Ruby said. "Because _now_ , she wants to help. She wants to make things right. Just like me and you."

"You're hopelessly naïve, Avatar," Ironwood shook his head. "She's the _enemy_."

"No. She's not. The enemy is whoever lets our differences get in the way of saving the world." Ruby's eyes narrowed. "Right now, you are no better than the Fire Lord."

Ironwood stared at her for a long time, frustration coloring his face. Eventually, however, he turned away and raised a hand in defeat.

"Fine. You've made your point, Avatar," he said. "Release Cinder Fall. She is no longer a prisoner of the Earth Army." He looked at Ruby. "She's _your_ responsibility now."

Ruby smiled. "That's fine with me."

Ironwood's soldiers unlocked Cinder's cuffs. She stretched her arms above her head, then walked to Ruby, stopping briefly to curtsy to Ironwood. The general shifted where he stood, caught by surprise.

"I owe you, Avatar," Cinder said.

"Eh, I don't think so. You did save my life already," Ruby shrugged. "We're quits."

"If you say so."

Ruby turned back to look at Ironwood.

"Thanks for being cool, General," she said, then bit her lip. "But, just so we're clear… I will admit that I can be really naïve sometimes, but today… that wasn't one of those times. I'm the Avatar. My job is to keep balance in the world. That means protecting anyone who needs protecting, no matter what nation they're from, and stopping people who are being jerks to them." She gestured at him. "So, you know… don't be a jerk."

General James Ironwood of the Earth Kingdom Army looked absolutely baffled, and from the way he kept opening and closing his mouth, it appeared he had a lot to say, and at the same time, was utterly lost for words. Also, there appeared to be a new admiration for the Avatar in his eyes.

But maybe that last part was just Ruby being too smug for her own good.

* * *

They ran for hours, it felt like, repelling Grimm after Grimm, taking short breaks in sheltered places before going again, never giving time to be overwhelmed. Taiyang made sure they kept on their way west, never losing sight of the Rift.

When the sun set, the Grimm started being less of a nuisance. Eventually, they stopped coming altogether. Maybe they had smartened up after seeing dozens of their kind be slayed before their eyes. But Taiyang, Yang and Blake didn't stop moving, not until they found a cave on the foot of a high cliff. There, Taiyang made a quick fireplace, then dragged Yang to the very back, disappearing in the dark.

Blake remained alone, sitting near the fire. She laid her sword down beside her, wary of being caught unarmed after the day she'd had. She was exhausted, but she couldn't go to sleep. Not yet.

An hour or so later, Taiyang returned. He sat down on the other side of the fire and rubbed his forehead tiredly.

"How is she?" Blake asked anxiously.

"She's better," Taiyang replied. "Not by much, but she's better. She's talking. _A lot_."

"That's… good, I guess." Blake looked down at her lap. "I knew she was having a rough time. Losing her firebending… I can't imagine…"

Taiyang reached for the fire and took a bit of it, cupping it in his hands. It danced around his fingers, shining bright yellow and orange.

"There's this misconception about the bending arts, that they come from certain emotions common to their respective peoples," he said. "For example, it is said that earthbending comes from willpower, and firebending comes from anger. The truth is, it's different for everybody. There are sources of bending that are common to a lot of people, that's true, but that's a result of culture."

"I would say that my daughter is an earthbender at heart," he continued. "So headstrong. So unfearful. When she makes her mind about something, nothing and no one can change that…" He paused. "Or so it used to be."

"I suppose it's been coming for a long time now. It started with realizing that the Avatar wasn't the villain she was said to be. And now it ends with losing the hope that her mother was…" his voice faltered. "…was not a monster. It broke her."

"And now the source of her bending is gone."

Blake looked at the darkness at the back of the cave. Maybe what was hurting Yang most of all, she thought, wasn't her inability to firebend, but what had led to that. She had been so determined to confront her mother… maybe she had been expecting a miracle, and all she got was the confirmation of her worst fears.

"Is that forever?" Blake asked.

"Not necessarily," Taiyang answered. "Some people never regain their bending. But some can find another source, oftentimes an even better one. I'm confident Yang will recover from this, stronger than ever."

Blake looked down at the fire and smiled a little. She was relieved to hear Yang's condition wasn't irreversible. Knowing Yang, she would be better in no time.

"May I ask you a question, Blake?"

Blake looked up at Taiyang and nodded.

"Why are you going to Vale with us?" he asked.

"I have a… friend, there," she replied after a moment's consideration. "I need to see him again. Make sure he's okay."

"I hope he is," Taiyang said. "But that's not really the answer I was looking for. You could be going on your own. I think that if you hadn't stopped to help Yang, you would be nearly at Vale by now." He raised an eyebrow. "I don't see why you would trust us."

Blake blinked. "Yang trusted me."

She stared at him for a while, then moved away from the fire and closer to a wall, where she lied down and closed her eyes, sword still close by.

Taiyang nodded. That answer was actually just what he hoped to hear.

* * *

The mood at the camp was a little tense. Ruby would have liked to say that wasn't the case, but she couldn't pretend. Showing up with Cinder Fall, ex-servant of the Fire Lord and her would-be assassin, was bound to cause some weirdness, to put it mildly.

She could see Weiss was at the verge of throwing a fit. It was only her rigorous upbringing as a princess that was keeping her from unleashing a ten-minute tirade upon not only Cinder, but Ruby too. Ruby knew she would later be getting a very stern talking to from her.

Pyrrha was taking it relatively well. She was also apprehensive about Cinder – she had grown up in the war-ridden Earth Kingdom, after all – but she seemed almost relieved that she wasn't the newest addition to the group anymore. Pyrrha took it upon herself to fill Cinder in on the important bits of their journey, as she knew it.

And Jaune was absolutely terrified.

"M-meat soup?" he asked meekly, offering Cinder a bowl.

Cinder looked at the bowl, then at him, and said in the flattest tone possible, "No."

Jaune didn't as much as look at her again for the rest of the night.

When she was done with her own dinner, Ruby decided it was about time she spoke a little. It wouldn't do to ignore what everyone was feeling, and she did feel guilty about springing this up on her friends.

"Okay, guys," she began, standing up. She waited until everyone was looking at her, then pointed awkwardly at Cinder. "So. This is Cinder. Everyone say hi to Cinder."

"Hello!" Pyrrha waved cheerfully.

Weiss crossed her arms, refusing to look at Cinder. "Hmph."

Jaune made a gargled sound with his throat.

"Uh, yeah. Right. So…" Ruby gulped. "She's joining us. Which I guess you've already figured out. But, uh, it's because General Ironwood is a jerk and won't accept her. But she's a good person, and she wants to help, so… here she is." She paused. " _But_. I wanna make sure everyone is okay with that."

The camp was silent. Ruby began to despair a little, feeling Cinder's eyes fall on her.

Finally, Pyrrha spoke up. "I'm fine with this. I know I'm also kinda new here, but… for what it counts, you've all welcomed me with open arms, and I've felt at home because of that. You're the best friends I've ever had." She smiled at Cinder. "I think if we accept Cinder like you've accepted me, we'll all grow even closer."

Ruby gave Pyrrha two thumbs-up. Cinder bowed her head gratefully.

"Uhm… if you think this is the right thing to do, Ruby, then I'm right behind you," Jaune said slowly, twiddling his thumbs on his lap. "And I don't wanna be a jerk to anyone. That's also a part of it."

"Thank you, Jaune," Cinder said.

" _Eeep_ ," came his most eloquent reply.

Ruby turned to look at Weiss. The princess' posture hadn't softened up in the least. "Weiss?"

Weiss drew a deep breath, looking up at the sky. "Of all your boneheaded ideas… _Fine_." She glared daggers at Cinder. "But don't expect us to be friends."

Cinder made a helpless gesture with her hands, then looked at Ruby. "Maybe in time?"

"Tomorrow, for sure!" Ruby declared cheerfully. She looked around the camp, her expression growing serious. "Guys… There's something else I wanna talk to you about."

Weiss let go her bitterness to stare at Ruby attentively. Jaune and Pyrrha shared a look, concerned by the sudden shift in their friend's voice. Cinder leaned forward a little, eyes reflecting the light from the campfire.

"I told General Ironwood that I wouldn't let him take Cinder prisoner because I'm the Avatar. Because I'm supposed to keep a balance, protect everyone… but there's more to it than that." Ruby gulped. "I could have been a firebender."

There was a moment of silence as everyone processed that information. Then, Jaune raised a hand dutifully. "Well, _technically_ you _are_ a firebender…"

"That's not what she meant, you dolt!" Weiss picked up a stick from the ground and threw it at him. She turned to Ruby. "Explain."

"Well… as it turns out, my father is a firebender. We've met him already, actually. Because, you know, Yang is my sister."

" _What_." Weiss blurted out.

"But she wanted to capture you!" Jaune exclaimed. "Well, until she stopped and we found she's actually a pretty cool person with a few personal issues about family and… but she wanted to capture you!"

"Who's Yang again?" Pyrrha asked, more than a little lost.

"The Fire Nation princess," Cinder replied succinctly. "Former princess. It's complicated."

"I was just as surprised as you guys when Ozpin showed me," Ruby continued. "But I know it's the truth. In another world, I could have been born a firebender, and… maybe I'm wrong, but I think that wouldn't change me that much, right? I'd still be me."

"You don't know that," Weiss objected. "Airbending is a part of you. Besides, if you _had_ been born a firebender, I don't think you could have been the Avatar. And being the Avatar defines you, Ruby."

"If she weren't the Avatar – if she were a firebender," Cinder spoke up. "Would Ruby be a bad person?"

"Of course not," Weiss replied immediately. "She's Ruby."

Cinder smiled, as if she's just moved the last chess piece to lock her into a checkmate. Weiss frowned, bothered by the conclusion they had reached.

"So, the lesson is," Jaune stated. "Jerks will be jerks, no matter what nation, but most jerks come from the Fire Nation."

"Jaune! No! As the Avatar, I can't agree with that," Ruby said sternly. She held that expression for a few seconds, then threw her arms up in defeat. "But, yeah, you're right."

They looked at each other, then started laughing. Weiss and Pyrrha joined, and even Cinder let out a few chuckles.

When the laughter died down, Ruby spoke again. "I'm super tired after today. I'm gonna sleep and tomorrow we can figure out what we'll do next."

"I'll be going too," Weiss said guiltily. "My sleep schedule is terribly off. Good night, everyone."

"Good night, you two!" Jaune exclaimed.

Weiss entered her tent, and Ruby jumped to her tree branch and disappeared amidst her cloak. Cinder stared at her, appearing to have been caught off-guard for the first time tonight.

"She sleeps in a tree…" she murmured in disbelief.

Pyrrha patted her sympathetically on the shoulder. "You have a lot to learn, friend."


	32. Beacon Tower

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Twelve: Beacon Tower**

* * *

Jaune sat up in his sleeping bag, stretching his arms up and letting out a huge yawn. He blinked a few times, then looked up. He could make out a little bit of the outside through the material of his tent, and so he could tell that it was rather early in the morning.

He grinned. This was his opportunity to make an impression. He was usually the last one to wake up, but today would be different. It was bound to impress Ruby and Pyrrha, even Weiss perhaps – and Cinder, he supposed, though he wasn't sure he wanted any of her attention to be on him.

Jaune got up, changed quickly into his day clothes, and attached his sword and scabbard to his belt. Then, smile widening, he stepped outside.

"Hello, everyone!" he shouted. "Time to wake-"

His voice disappeared. Everyone was already awake and going about packing up the camp. Jaune groaned and looked at the sky. He hadn't been mistaken, it was _definitely_ earlier than usual.

"Hello, Jaune!" Pyrrha approached him, speaking in a cheery voice. She had her bag open in her hands and was packing the last of her things. "Good morning to you!"

"Good morning, Pyrrha," he said defeatedly. "How long has everyone been awake?"

"Not long. I was going to wake you up soon, but only if you took too long." She winked. "I wouldn't want to invade your privacy."

"Thanks, Pyrrha." Jaune smiled, his mood lifting a bit. "You're such a nice person, I'm really glad we're friends."

Pyrrha paused for a moment, then returned the smile in full. She turned around and walked away to gather more of her things.

Jaune looked around and saw Ruby and Weiss standing at the edge of camp. Weiss had a map in her hands, at which she was staring at very importantly. Jaune knew that face - the infamous _I'm-planning-ahead-so-we-all-don't-get-ambushed-and-die_ face. Ruby, on the other hand, couldn't look more bored.

"Come on, Weiss. It's easy!" He heard her say as he approached. "We go to Vale, like this…" Ruby raised a finger and traced a straight line in the air. "…and if something happens, we do something like this!" She wiggled her finger around, then made another straight line. "It can't go wrong."

"Ruby, don't pretend like you've forgotten what happened the last time you were given map responsibilities. You'll have to forgive my being _hesitant_ to trust your judgement again after that," Weiss said doubtfully.

"A straight line is still straight if you turn it upside down," Ruby stated wisely.

Weiss opened and closed her mouth for a few seconds. "…You are right, but that is not the point!" She shook her head. "There's bound to be hordes of Grimm standing between here and the capital. What happens if we get targeted by one?"

"We fight? Duh." Ruby shrugged. "Since when have we struggled to fight Grimm?"

"Hmm. I suppose, with the addition of Cinder, we are even more capable of such boneheaded tactics," Weiss said, now starting to consider Ruby's suggestion. "We have four powerful fighters… Yes, maybe, maybe…"

"You mean _five_ powerful fighters, right?" Jaune spoke up.

Weiss looked up from the map and fixed him with a stare that could freeze a volcano. Jaune immediately regretted drawing her attention.

"I meant four," she said. "What are you doing standing there like a lost sheep-dog? Go pack your stuff. We've been waiting almost an hour now."

"Pyrrha said you guys just woke up!" Jaune exclaimed.

"Well, _obviously_ she said that. She's too kind." Weiss rolled her eyes. "So? You're still here! _Shoo_!"

Jaune mumbled a half-dozen apologies and turned around to go back to his tent. He immediately froze, however, as someone else walked by him, brushing against his arm. "Good morning, Jaune."

"G-good morning, Cinder," Jaune barely managed to respond. He raced along until he reached Pyrrha, then proceeded to hide behind her while watching Cinder. Pyrrha threw him a dubious look, but didn't say anything.

Cinder stopped before Ruby and Weiss and tapped her quiver and bow, hanging on her back by a strap around her torso. "I've retrieved my possessions. The General wasn't pleased, but he couldn't stop me. Thank you again, Avatar."

" _Ruby_ ," the redhead corrected significantly.

"Ruby." Cinder smiled slightly, then looked down at the map. "Have you decided what path we will be taking?"

"Ruby has had the brilliant idea of just walking there," Weiss said. "I'm afraid I might actually be agreeing with her."

Cinder hummed thoughtfully. "Well, if you don't have a particular route in mind, might I suggest something?"

Weiss looked suspiciously at her, but relented when Ruby poked her in the back of her neck. "Let's hear it."

"You are going to Vale to negotiate the Earth Kingdom's alliance with the Water Tribes, correct?" Cinder asked. "And, as an extension of that, finally form a collective plan of attack to drive back and potentially defeat the Fire Nation once and for all?"

"That's the gist of it," Weiss said. "Very intuitive of you, Cinder."

"Thank you." Cinder didn't sound like she'd missed the message. "Now that I've joined you, I think there's a lot I can contribute to that cause. Like I've already said, I know much about the inner workings of the Fire Nation and its army." She paused. "I think the Earth Queen would be very pleased if we brought her information about the connection between the Fire Lord and the Grimm."

Jaune jumped a little and, in reflex, slammed his hand on the back of Pyrrha's shoulder. The earthbender looked back at him, alarmed.

"S-sorry," he muttered. "Got spooked."

Pyrrha gave him a look that told that was rather obvious.

"So you know what's going on with that craziness?" Ruby asked Cinder. "We were wondering about that. Torchwick summoned a Nevermore back at the North Pole, and then there was that huge turtle-thing…"

"To be honest, I don't know the details," Cinder said. "Which is why I want us to take a quick detour to Beacon Tower."

"Beacon Tower? As in, the Earth Kingdom university?" Weiss asked. "I thought that was in the capital."

"The university itself is in Vale. Beacon Tower is not far from it, in the countryside," Cinder explained. "To my knowledge, they use it as a research post. Gathering that much information in one place can be much too dangerous."

"And you think we could find information on the Grimm there?" Weiss crossed her arms, looking at the peak of suspiciousness about Cinder.

"The Fire Lord was interested in Beacon Tower. And by that, I mean she wanted it gone, burned to the ground," Cinder said. "There has to be something there that she would rather remain undiscovered. Whether that's the methods she is utilizing to summon Grimm, or something else…"

Weiss humphed. She looked down at the map, examining it thoroughly until she found the Tower. After a moment, she looked at Ruby. "It's not far. A three days diversion, at most."

"That's settled, then!" Ruby declared cheerfully. "We're going to Beacon Tower!"

Weiss slammed the map shut and glared at Ruby. She was at the cusp of a tirade about consulting her friends and such things, when her eyes drifted to the side and fell upon Jaune.

"Oh, no," he muttered, trying to hide better behind Pyrrha. It didn't work in the slightest.

" _Jaune_!" Weiss yelled, marching towards him. "You useless idiot! Get a move on!"

Whimpering, Jaune jumped inside his tent and started to gather his things as quick as he could.

* * *

After everything was packed up and everyone had eaten a quick meal, they headed west, leaving the town and the Earth Army behind.

As Weiss had predicted, the way to Vale was full of Grimm. With five of them together, it was a hard job to pass by undetected, and so they found themselves repelling the monsters almost hourly. Inconvenient as that was, Pyrrha had found a way to turn it to their advantage, making impromptu earthbending lessons for Ruby, using the Grimm as targets.

Cinder didn't contribute as much, but there was no doubt that she was always watching out for danger. Ruby understood why she was being so reserved when a Ursa jumped Jaune and Cinder disposed of it with a stream of fire. He yelled and would have run away from them if Pyrrha hadn't caught him by the arm, and Weiss had turned on Cinder on the spot, drawing water from her canteens.

Ruby felt bad for Cinder, but since she didn't say anything, Ruby decided it was better to keep quiet too. Cinder didn't strike her as someone who needed defending.

"How much time until we get to this Bacon Tower, you think?" Jaune asked Weiss on the afternoon of the second day.

"A couple days more, if everything goes as planned," Weiss replied. "And it's _Beacon_ , not _Bacon_."

"Oh." Jaune pouted. "Well, I'm not very excited about this trip anymore."

As the sun set on the third day, they heard the howling of many Grimm – certainly more than the usual pack. Ruby climbed to the top of a tree, fast as the wind, and came back down even faster.

"There are people trapped by the Grimm!" she yelled. "Hurry up, they're just ahead!"

She ran ahead, and the group followed her. There was a dozen or so refugees from the invasion huddled together, backing away, but there were hills around, too steep for an escape. A mass of all kinds of Grimm converged on them from all sides.

They went to work without need for anyone to say anything. Weiss didn't spare any water, disposing of the Grimm with precision to cover for the others. Jaune and Pyrrha went in more personally, Pyrrha doing most of the work, while Jaune watched her back and took care of any Grimm that came too close.

Ruby sliced through the Grimm, keeping her mind focused – her job was not to kill, but to banish the Grimm for good. Combining her air, water, and earthbending, she achieved results far greater than if she had used them individually.

In a matter of minutes, the Grimm were all gone… except for one Nevermore, which was about to fly away. There was a little boy in its talons. If the Grimm took off, he would be brought along.

"No!" Ruby screamed. She started towards the beast, preparing to give chase with her staff, but an arrow buzzed through the air and pierced the side of the Nevermore's head. The massive bird stopped in place for a moment, then fell on its side.

Released from its talons, the little boy ran away, rejoining a couple in the group of refugees. A moment later, the arrowhead buried in the Nevermore released a spark, and the Grimm was enveloped in fire from top to bottom. Soon, it was nothing but ash.

Ruby looked back and saw Cinder putting her bow away. The firebender gave her a little smile, then turned away, waiting patiently with her hands behind her back.

Once they had made sure the refugees were all okay and that they were on the right way to Vale, Ruby and her friends got back on track towards Beacon Tower. Once their nerves were calmed, Ruby approached Weiss, looking a little smug.

"Still don't trust Cinder?" she asked.

"Since you're asking, yes, I still don't trust her," Weiss replied sharply. "She rescued a little boy, and oh, how convenient, we were there to watch. She's _such_ a hero."

Ruby frowned, wanting to argue with Weiss, but the princess sped up her steps, catching up to Pyrrha and engaging her in conversation. Ruby looked back at Cinder, who had remained quiet since the skirmish.

"Weiss will come around…" Ruby whispered to herself.

* * *

A few hours past dawn the following day, the group finally saw Beacon Tower in the distance.

It was impossible to miss. Standing at the top of a rocky mount, the tower was a building taller than any Ruby had ever seen. If she were to climb to the roof and jump up, it would take little to reach the clouds, she bet.

Between them and the tower was an arid plain. As they began to cross it, Pyrrha spoke up. "Does anyone see any Grimm?"

"I don't," Jaune said. "Why?"

"It's odd. I can't feel any living thing around us," Pyrrha said. "Usually that means the animals have run away."

"It _is_ a little odd that there are no Grimm nearby after what we've seen," Weiss noted. "Ruby?"

Ruby stopped briefly and closed her eyes. It wasn't something she could do willingly, but whenever there were Grimm nearby, she felt an upsetting feeling in the back of her head. It was useful, but right now she could only hear the soft breeze, and that was it.

"Nope," she said. "Guess we're just lucky."

"About time!" Jaune shouted gratefully. "Seriously, I thought I was gonna lose my head if the Grimm didn't stop coming."

"It's okay, Jaune, we all thought the same," Weiss assured, patting him in the shoulder.

They crossed the plain and reached the mount. There was a rocky stairway that came out from the side of it, presumably made by earthbenders. It led to the very top.

"That doesn't look safe at all," Jaune complained quietly.

"I can take you to the top with me, if you want!" Ruby offered.

Jaune gulped, starting towards the stairs. "I'll take my chances with the regular climb, thank you."

"Let me lead the way. I can sense if anything's going to give," Pyrrha said, surpassing him. "You can hold onto me, if that makes you feel better!"

"N-no, that's unnecessary. I'm not afraid." Jaune climbed two steps, then gingerly reached forward to hold onto Pyrrha's arm. The earthbender beamed at him and started going up the stairs.

Ruby took out her staff and jumped at the side of the mount, then made her way to the top using successive bursts of airs. Peebles and dust rained down on the stairway below, making Jaune yelp and cling tighter to Pyrrha,

Weiss dusted her clothes grumpily, then followed Pyrrha and Jaune. She did so confidently at first, but midway through she looked down and felt the world start spinning around her. They were _really_ far up. Weiss braced herself against the wall and took a deep breath.

"Want to hold onto me?" Cinder asked, just behind her. The playful tone of her voice caught Weiss off-guard, and she promptly forgot where she was.

" _No_ ," Weiss hissed, and started to climb again.

"And here I was hoping otherwise." Cinder smirked. "Do you think he knows?"

Weiss looked back at her confusedly. Cinder stopped to point at Jaune, who was now almost to the point of sharing steps with Pyrrha – and she didn't look at all annoyed. If anything, she seemed to be enjoying it.

"Knows what?" Weiss asked.

Cinder tilted her head to the side a little, then shrugged. "Never mind."

Frustrated, Weiss climbed faster. Five minutes later, they were at the top of the mount. Ruby was sitting on a rock with a very annoyed expression.

"What took you so long?" she asked.

"Jaune nearly had a mental collapse," Weiss explained. "He slowed us all down."

"That's not – okay that is true," Jaune said. Only then did he notice he was still holding on to Pyrrha. He let go and edged away awkwardly. "T-thanks Pyrrha."

"It was my pleasure," Pyrrha said. "Shall we go inside?"

The Tower was right in front of them, its entrance facing the cliffside. There was a shallow set of steps that lead up to two huge marble doors. There were glyphs on the walls and doors, but none of them knew the language they belonged to.

Ruby took the lead, springing up the steps and reaching for the doors. She laid her hand on the marble to open the way, but suddenly she was stumbling back, as if an invisible force had struck her. Ruby fell on her knees, clutching her forehead and breathing fast.

"Ruby!" Jaune drew his sword and stood between her and the doors, but nothing about had changed. "What happened?"

Ruby mumbled something. Weiss crouched beside her to hear, then looked up at the others. "Don't… touch? Don't touch the doors, you mean?"

Jaune lowered his sword, then went forward and, after a moment's hesitation, touched the marble. Nothing happened. He ran his palm up and down the marble, and still there was no change.

"I don't feel anything," he said, looking worriedly at Ruby.

"It's like… like Grimm," Ruby spoke, this time loud enough that she didn't need Weiss to repeat her words. "But worse. A lot worse."

"Perhaps there's Grimm inside, then," Weiss said, her eyes flying to Cinder. "Why are there Grimm inside a _research post_?"

Cinder looked up and down the tower, her expression unreadable. "Most likely because the Fire Lord got her wish."

She took out her bow and notched an arrow, then nodded at Pyrrha and the doors. Pyrrha took a firm stance, then raised her arms and spread them apart. Following her movement, the marble doors opened slowly, grazing slightly against the floor.

Beyond the doorway was only darkness. Cinder pulled back the arrow on her bowstring and made the head catch fire, then marched inside. She spun around, then walked even further in, disappearing in the shadows.

Almost a minute later, she returned. "No Grimm, at least not on the ground floor." She looked at Ruby. "Are you sure you felt what you did?"

"I'm sure," Ruby said, standing up. "Let's go in."

"After what just happened? Are you crazy?" Weiss asked. "We don't need this information _that_ much! We know the Fire Nation is meddling with Grimm, that should be enough for the Earth Queen."

"No, it won't be enough." Ruby shook her head. "Come on, Weiss."

The princess looked at the sky in resignation. Taking Ruby's wrist, she walked inside the tower. "I'm not letting you out of my sight."

Jaune looked at Pyrrha doubtfully. She gave him a reassuring smile, then went after Weiss and Ruby. A moment later, he followed.

Cinder stayed at the entrance a while longer, not saying a word as they passed her. When everyone was inside, she looked around sharply, a slight frown coming to her forehead. Then she nocked an arrow on her bow again and went inside.

The doors closed behind her.

At the very top of the tower, a dark figure left the window from where it had been watching.

* * *

It was dark inside the tower, and not in the usual way. It wasn't just an absence of light; there were a few windows here and there from which sunlight could come in. Rather, the darkness they found themselves in felt almost _physical_ , like it was pressing on them from every direction, and taking strange, evil shapes in the corner of their eyes.

Cinder led the way. She had been forced to put her bow away so she could keep a fire cupped in her hands. And though everyone was grateful for that source of light, it was admittedly doing very little to help them find their way through the place. There were rooms upon rooms and stairs upon stairs, and no matter how much they walked, they didn't seem to make any progress.

"Okay, I'll be the first one to say it, since nobody else is willing. Besides, this is pretty much my role in the team, so…" Jaune gulped loudly enough for everyone else to hear. "I regret everything that led us to this place and I wish I was anywhere else right now. That's it. Who's with me?"

He waited for anyone to agree, but, as he had expected, he was left to shoulder those feelings on his own.

"It would help if we had a better idea what we're looking for," Weiss said, glaring at the back of Cinder's neck.

"I couldn't agree more." Cinder didn't bother to look back at her. There was something strange about the way she spoke – she didn't sound nearly as confident, and Weiss' continued misgivings about her didn't seem to be amusing her anymore.

"Well, then," Weiss insisted. "Do you have _any_ idea?"

"If I had, we wouldn't be stumbling around in the dark right now!" Cinder snapped, looking back over her shoulder. "Look for scrolls. Books. Anything on Grimm. You can figure that out on your own, yes?"

Weiss pursed her lips, then turned to look at Ruby, as if she was somehow to blame for the entire situation. The Avatar giggled nervously, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers. "This sure is spooky, eh? Eh, Weiss?"

Weiss shook her head in disapproval. "I can't believe I'm stuck here with-"

" _Shhh!_ "

Weiss turned around, bewildered at the interruption. She was even more surprised to discover it had been Pyrrha, and not Jaune, who had shushed her. The earthbender had stopped walking, and was leaning against a wall, feeling the cut stone with the palm of her hand.

"What?" Ruby whispered, walking close. "Do you feel something – oh yeah, there's something there!" She tapped her foot a couple times. "At the other side, a room!"

"Wait, how do you know?" Jaune asked.

"In addition to bending the four elements, the Avatar has the amazing ability to see through walls," Weiss said dryly.

Jaune looked genuinely confused by her answer. He leaned close to Ruby, peering into her eyes suspiciously. She was too distracted to give him any mind.

Pyrrha's hand stopped, her lips forming a little 'o' shape. She pushed, and a square of stone gave in to her touch. There was a low rumbling, then a huge section of the wall slid down into the floor, revealing what was on the other side.

As Ruby had predicted, it was a room larger than all the others they had visited combined. The ceiling was so high, they couldn't see it through the darkness. Enormous bookshelves filled the place, spanning to the left and right without visible end. Books, scrolls, paintings, and all manners of scripture and art were at display, so many that a person could spend their whole life there and not get half through the collection.

"…Cool," Jaune said.

"You know what…" Weiss paused. "I agree with Jaune."

" _Thank_ _you_!" Jaune looked at Pyrrha and smiled, adding in a small voice, "I'm still relevant."

"Do you think we'll find what we need here?" Ruby asked Cinder.

"It would be the most likely place," the firebender said, looking around curiously. "I say we give it an hour's search. If by then we haven't found anything, some of us should leave and look through the rest of the tower, while the others remain here."

"Are you suggesting we split up? In this dark, confusing tower?" Weiss turned to look at her, putting her hands on her hips. "That sounds _wonderful_."

Cinder bristled, but didn't say anything. Ruby muttered an apology to her, then walked to Weiss and dragged her away a bit.

"Weiss! Please!" Ruby pleaded, stopping beside a bookshelf. "Can't you give it a rest? Cinder hasn't done anything bad."

"Oh, I bet she has, we just haven't seen it!" Weiss hissed. "You've let your guard down, Ruby. You haven't even considered the thought that she might be playing you, not since the whole fiasco with Ironwood!"

"Hey! That's not true! I've considered that a lot!" Ruby frowned. "You're not inside my head. You can't know what I'm thinking."

"I don't _need_ to be inside your head to know what you're thinking," Weiss said.

Ruby huffed angrily, but Weiss could tell she was feeling guilty too. They looked at Cinder, who was handing over lit candles to Jaune and Pyrrha. The darkness seemed to get even worse the more light they tried to use.

"Look. She's being helpful," Ruby said. "If I were evil and I were in Cinder's place, I would take those candles and shove them in Jaune's eyes."

Weiss just stared at her for a moment. Ruby had the decency to look awkward.

"Okay," Weiss said, pretending that last bit of conversation hadn't happened. "I know it's useless to argue with you. You're gonna think the best of Cinder regardless of what I say. That's fine. I'll just have to be vigilant for the both of us. Or _four_ , because Jaune is too scared and Pyrrha is too polite," she paused. "And if Cinder gets mad about it, well… It's not like people like me very much anyway."

"Aw, Weiss…" Ruby shuffled towards her. " _I_ like you."

Weiss, annoyed as she was, let Ruby hug her. They both deserved it with the day they were having. And, although she would never admit it, it felt nice to have someone so close in this darkness.

"Hey," Pyrrha's voice cut through the silence, awakening Weiss from her peace. "Where did Cinder go?"

Ruby and Weiss looked at each other, then went back to the center of the room. Pyrrha was standing there with her candle, very still and with her eyes closed.

"I can't… feel her," she said quietly. "One moment she was there, the next she wasn't. How can…" She tilted her head. "This place is _not_ normal."

"Or something made it not normal," Weiss said, watching Ruby. The redhead had stopped completely, looking eerily like a statue. Her eyes were darting about wildly, glowing slightly in the dark.

Jaune's head poked out of an aisle. He was looking too cheerful for someone who until then had been scared out of mind. "Girls, guess what I found! _Meat Soup, an Art_ , volumes one through six! I thought I was alone, but I'm not the only genius who ever thought to-"

Suddenly, and with no explanation, one of the bookshelves veered towards him and fell with a thundering noise. Jaune's scream rang from somewhere below it. The candle he had been carrying rolled on the floor and extinguished.

"Jaune!" Ruby yelled, breaking out of her stupor. She jumped to the collapsed shelf and tried to lift it, but it was too heavy. "Help!"

Weiss joined her, but instead of using her hands, she took the water from her canteens and flicked it to below the bookshelf, then brought it sharply upwards. The force behind the movement sent the bookshelf flying a couple meters from the floor before it fell away from them, crashing against others. Broken wood and books went flying everywhere, the noise of it all making Ruby and Weiss shake.

Jaune rose to his knees and looked up. His face was red and his clothes were a little torn, but otherwise he looked fine. "Thanks! I thought I was gonna die!" He turned away, looking devastated. "Death by books, of all things…"

Ruby stumbled back, wiping her brow in relief. As she lowered her hand, she felt as if her body was freezing over. She couldn't hear anything except for the beating of her own heart, like war drums on her ears, drowning out everything else. She turned around…

Pyrrha was gone.

She started to turn towards Weiss, but everything went black. The darkness came to life around her, pushing against her like a torrent, almost knocking her off her feet. Where Jaune had been a moment before, she saw the glint of metal, then heard the muffled clang of his sword hitting the floor.

She raised a leg, trying to move forward, but the darkness's push grew fiercer, and Ruby was hurled backwards. She crashed against a bookshelf, knocking it over and causing a domino effect as the whole library seemed to be collapsing. Still she could barely hear anything.

Ruby looked up. A shadow skittered across the darkness, closing in on another silhouette. "Weiss!" she tried to scream, but nothing came out.

Darkness.

And suddenly, calm. She breathed free, no force pushing against her. She could hear perfectly fine, but the abrupt silence was worse. And aside from the panic of being alone and not knowing what had happened to her friends, she couldn't feel… anything.

Ruby got to her knees, shivering from head to toe. She needed to find everyone, fast. She had a feeling something awful would happen to them if she didn't. But she couldn't get anywhere in this darkness! She could try feeling out the tower with earthbending, but she wasn't half as good as Pyrrha was at that, and Pyrrha had been having a lot of trouble navigating the place.

If only the flames hadn't gone out. If only Cinder were with her, she could light the way.

"Wait," she whispered. "I can do that."

She had never tried, and to be honest with herself, just the thought made her nervous, but… she _could_ firebend. Being surrounded by very flammable wood and books, Ruby wouldn't have chosen this moment to first try it, but what other options did she have?

She rose on her knees, assuming a more rigid posture, and took a deep breath. Letting the air leave her lungs steadily, she raised her hands in front of her and cupped them, like Cinder had done. She closed her eyes.

In her mind's eye, she imagined a flame. Not a big one – she didn't want to burn the library – but not a small one – just enough to light the tower's dark corridors. A warmth started to spread through her body… she started to relax…

Images of the Fire Nation alighted in her mind. Soldiers scorching fields, chasing helpless Earth Kingdom citizens. Cities on fire, Grimm scouring through the rubble, the air charged with fear and despair.

The Southern Air Temple, her home. Fire Lord Raven, a red-eyed shadow standing in a maelstrom of fire. Smoke and ashes and charred bones and-

Ruby whimpered, pressing her head against her lap. She couldn't do it. She was lost. She was alone. Something was out there, the same thing that had gotten her friends, and soon it was going to get her too.

She would never see them again. Never laugh with Jaune about their dumb jokes. Never see the hidden warmth in Weiss' eyes. Never stand protected behind Pyrrha's shield…

Suddenly, an unbelievable warmth coursed through her, as if a small sun had come to life inside her. With it came a newfound strength. Fear was but an afterthought. Her spirit was unshakeable.

Ruby stood up and opened her eyes. In her hands burned a yellow flame, wavering rhythmically, as if it were dancing. She was surprised by how little effort it took to keep it lit.

The library didn't seem as dark now. The shadows were running from her, frightened by the new light.

She could feel it again, at the top of the tower, that dark presence which had repelled her at the door and taken her friends. Unlike then, Ruby wasn't scared of it. It was just another Grimm. Just another monster.

It wouldn't be difficult to get there, now that she had her flame. Ruby turned and left the library, her steps ringing clearly throughout the tower.

* * *

Something heavy fell nearby, startling Pyrrha awake. She was sitting on a wooden chair in the middle of a dark room. Immediately she tried to stand up, but metal restraints held her by her wrists. Grunting, she focused on them, intent on breaking them.

Nothing happened. Unsettled, Pyrrha stomped on the floor with one foot. She didn't feel anything – nothing, not the floor, not even herself!

She sank back in the chair, gasping quietly. The darkness felt suffocating. Was it the reason she couldn't bend?

"Pyrrha!" she heard Jaune speak somewhere to her right. "Are you okay?"

She leered at the darkness, but she couldn't see anything through it. "I'm fine. What about you? Can you move?"

"I can't. I'm trapped in a chair," Jaune growled. Pyrrha heard him kick the ground. "But now that you're awake, you can bend us free! Please?"

"I can't earthbend. I think it's this room," Pyrrha winced. Saying it aloud only made it worse.

"Oh no, that's terrible," Jaune whispered. "I can't earthbend either!"

He sounded so sincere, Pyrrha had to hold back laughter. This wasn't the moment to be having fun, she thought.

"What happened to you?" Jaune asked. "Weiss got me out of that bookshelf, and when we looked you were gone!"

"I don't know. Something knocked me out," Pyrrha said. "It… felt like a person, but it couldn't be. No one's that strong. They got me from behind, but I was prepared…"

"I'm not crazy then." Jaune sighed. "Someone caught me too. Didn't knock me out, though, which is kind of insulting now that I think about it," he said. "Makes sense though. Take out the strongest one first. Cinder, then you…"

"Ahah!" a new voice cackled in the darkness. "Thank you for noticing my genius!"

A sudden light blinded Pyrrha. When she opened her eyes again, a man was standing in the middle of the room, carrying a candelabra. He had white hair, beard and moustache, all which mustn't have been tended to in years from the disheveled looks of them. His right eye was twitching without pause, and he wore a lopsided smile.

He's completely unhinged, Pyrrha thought. She didn't dare speak, not knowing what he might do in response.

"Uh… You're welcome?" Jaune said. Pyrrha could see him now, tied to an identical chair beside her.

"Yes, I am!" the man yelled, shaking the candelabra up and down. "Unlike you! You are not welcome in my tower! Then why are you here?!"

"We…" Jaune's voice got quieter as he observed the candles of the candelabra sway dangerously. "We were looking for… stuff…"

"Bah! I know what your motives are, will you shut up!" The man turned around. "You nearly ruined it all! But you'll pay! You'll have your due!" He raised a finger with his free hand. "But first, let's wait until you are all here. I refuse to repeat myself, but all of you must understand the severity of your transgression before I send you on!"

"Send us… on?" Jaune looked at Pyrrha, pale as a sheet.

"AH YES!" the man shouted, startling them. "They will be here in a second."

For a moment, Pyrrha and Jaune looked at him, utterly confused, but then they heard what sounded like a fight happening nearby. The noises were growing closer by the second – thuds and crashes and splashes – and then Weiss came stumbling into the room, as if she had just been shoved, a ball of water floating beside her.

The princess turned towards the door at once, swinging her arms around to waterbend at her unknown foe, but her ball didn't respond. The darkness encroached around her, and suddenly, the water fell to the ground with a splash. Weiss looked at it, bewildered, then screamed as the unhinged man grabbed her from behind and shoved her in a vacant chair, locking her wrists with metal restraints.

"What – how dare you handle me like that! Release me at once!" Weiss shouted, trying to kick him, but he had already left her range. Frustrated, she looked to the side, and her eyes widened when she saw Pyrrha and Jaune.

"Hello," Pyrrha said.

"Welcome to our new club." Jaune glowered. "It sucks. A lot."

"What is the meaning of this?" Weiss demanded, whipping her head around to face their captor. "Who are you?"

"My name…" The man's smile widened, giving him an even more manic look. "…is Merlot! Doctor Merlot, for you!" He shook his candelabra at Weiss. "And you, and you too!" He shook it at Jaune and Pyrrha. "You have all made a terrible mistake!"

Weiss lowered her head, but continued to glare at him. If only she had five seconds to waterbend, she would make him realize it was _him_ who had made a terrible mistake.

"You have invaded my tower. The tower I've made my own! It never should have come to this, no one should be able to even enter the tower, but your Avatar friend… gah!" Merlot's face twisted with rage. "She makes my blood _boil_!"

Jaune lunged forward. "What have you done to Ruby?!"

"Don't worry about her, you'll be joining her soon!" Merlot's smile returned. "Worry about yourselves. Useless as worrying will be," he added under his breath. "What a mistake! You invaded my tower, for what reason? To seek out information on Grimm! On _killing_ Grimm!"

He tossed his candelabra on the floor. The candles' light lessened, rendering the room nearly pitch-black again. His twitching right eye seemed to glow red in the dark.

"My angels. The perfect beings… and you want to eradicate them…" Merlot whispered. "Monsters…"

"Us, monsters?" Weiss turned her head in disgust. "You're sick!"

"No, _you_ are sick!" Merlot shouted. "Just like everyone else! Only _I_ see the truth! But you will all pay for your crimes!" he cackled, putting his hands behind his back. "Now, with whom to start! Any volunteers…?"

Weiss, Jaune and Pyrrha looked at each other, searching the others' eyes for solutions, but none of them could see a way out of the situation. They had no bending, they didn't know what happened to Ruby, and Merlot was too crazy to reason with.

Jaune opened his mouth and started to speak, but Weiss and Pyrrha shouted wordlessly over him.

"It's settled, then!" Merlot laughed. "And your friend here will be the one to do it!" His face darkened. "She's positively devious, that one, so as a mercy, she'll get it last."

The three went mute, watching the door as a silhouette walked closer. For a terrifying moment, they had the same thought – it was Ruby, and they were about to find out what Merlot had done to her.

Cinder walked into the room. Jaune and Pyrrha looked at her, stunned. Weiss had the opposite reaction – her face went red, and she lunged forward, so fiercely that Merlot looked at her restraints nervously.

"I knew it! You treacherous snake!" Weiss yelled. "This is what you wanted all along! You lured us in here to pick us off one by one – you have Ruby now, ready to deliver to the Fire Lord – or – or…"

"Wait! Weiss!" Pyrrha exclaimed. "Something's wrong with Cinder! Look at her!"

Weiss put her rage aside for a moment, looking at Cinder more carefully. She realized at once that Pyrrha was right. Something just felt… _off_ , about Cinder. Her posture was much too slack, from the way she held her bow loosely in her right hand, to her head, hanging forward as if she were about to fall asleep. Moreover, her eyes… they were so black, barely any amber remained in them.

"Ah, yes," Merlot said contently. "I'm afraid your friend is not quite herself right now. How terrible for you – and how terrible for _her_ when I wake her up!"

"What's…" Weiss recoiled, horrified. "What did you _do_ to her?"

"I didn't do anything! I have a little friend, you see, who loves getting to know people – from the inside-out!" Merlot cackled. "It's been weeks since anyone wandered over these parts. He was quite eager to take one of you and help me defend my tower!"

"She's… she possessed?" Jaune asked. "You had her possessed by a Grimm?!"

"No! I didn't have her anything! That's what's wrong with you lot, with everyone, you won't ever understand no matter how many times I explain!" Merlot exclaimed. "The Grimm are not to be commanded. They are perfect beings. If you weren't so jealous and afraid of them, maybe you could be friends with them too… though I doubt they would ever tolerate such deplorable specimens…"

"Jealous," Weiss repeated, ice cold. "I suppose even the Grimm are saner than you. No wonder you are jealous of them."

Merlot turned towards her. "Fine. I have decided to take away that small gift of choice I gave you. Clearly, you did not deserve it, ungrateful children." He snapped his fingers. "You'll be the first to go, waterbender."

Cinder's head snapped up, and she took a step forward towards Weiss. Slowly, she raised her bow, then nocked an arrow and pulled it back. Weiss didn't look away, even as Jaune and Pyrrha shouted.

The candelabra went out, immersing the room in darkness.

A second later, a light spread through every corner, radiant but not blinding. Cinder drew back her arrow just a smidge, and Merlot turned to look at the doorway.

"Wow, what the heck is going on here?" Ruby asked, looking around confusedly.

"No! You should be dead!" Merlot shouted furiously. "The Avatar shouldn't be able to survive such darkness!"

Ruby blinked. "Okay."

Ruby glided forward, moving her flame to one hand while she produced a burst of air with the other. Merlot flew backwards and slammed his back against a wall. As he slid to the ground, he raised a hand and pointed at Ruby.

"Get her!" he screeched. "Take the Avatar!"

Cinder whirled around, dropping her bow, and swung a punch at Ruby. The redhead yelped as she ducked under the attack, struggling to keep her flame going, and kicked Cinder in the knee. Unfortunately, she wasn't exactly practiced in that kind of combat, and ended up hurting herself more than Cinder.

"Aw!" Ruby pouted, looking up at Cinder. "Why are you so tough?"

"Ruby, she's possessed!" Jaune yelled. "Be careful!"

"Oh, that makes a lot of sense, actually," Ruby said, dodging another punch. "I'll have to be creative. Wouldn't want to hurt – oof!"

Cinder kneed her in the stomach, driving the air out of her lungs and sending her sprawling backwards. Ruby lost her balance and fell to the floor sideways. As her arm hit the floor, her flame went out, and darkness set on her from all around. Ruby waved her hands, trying to conjure fire again, but it was useless.

"Take her! Take her!" Merlot shouted from the dark.

Cinder crouched beside her and grabbed her by the arm, pushing her onto her back. Her face void of all emotion, the possessed firebender straddled Ruby and put both hands on her forehead.

For an instant, the darkness in the room assembled on Cinder, then showered onto Ruby, assaulting her much like before, except worse. Ruby raised her hands helplessly to protect her face, but it was no use. She felt like something was trying to tear her apart, like a million drills were burrowing into her. She closed her eyes and reached deep inside herself…

Cinder fell on her side with a heavy _thud_. The darkness lifted. For a moment, there was silence.

Ruby sat up and came face to face with a tiny, member-less Grimm. It was floating there, and though its face was like a mask with no eyes, she was certain it was very angry at her.

"How?!" Merlot screamed, getting up in his corner of the room. "How did you resist the Geist?!"

"You just tried to possess the Avatar. _The Avatar_." Ruby tapped the side of her head. "Being possessed is my thing! And let me tell you, the current occupants are not very happy about this mess!"

"Damn you, Avatar!" Merlot backed away. "I'll see to it that you pay for every Grimm you've unjustly killed!"

"So, none?" Ruby slapped the Geist away and jumped to her feet, smiling. "Stay right there, mister. I'm sure we'll find some Earth Kingdom soldiers nearby to take you to prison!" She raised a finger. "You see, _that's_ how you punish bad people. Not possession. Not killing. _Prison_."

Merlot leaned forward, his fists shaking, and Ruby prepared herself, sure that he would try to fight her himself now. Focused as she was on him, she was unable to do anything as the Geist flew around the room and dived into the doctor without resistance.

Merlot's eyes became black, and dark veins spread across his pale face. Ruby flinched. If he attacked now, she wasn't sure what she could do…

But the possessed Merlot didn't attack. Instead, he turned and launched himself at the wall, breaking through it. The blue of the sky appeared as sunlight poured into the room, and Merlot fell. Ruby ran to the hole in the wall and looked over the edge, expecting to see the worst… but Merlot was gone.

"Did he just jump?" Jaune asked, struggling to look over his shoulder on his chair.

"He's gone," Ruby said, perplexed.

"Gone? Like, dead?" Jaune raised an eyebrow. "I mean, I'm not gonna cheer of anything, but…"

"No, I mean he's _gone_!" Ruby said. "Like, _poof_! Gone!"

"Man, that's really convenient for him." Jaune frowned. "Wish I could do that."

Pyrrha snapped her restraints. "Hey, I can bend again!"

Ruby looked over the edge one last time, just to make sure she wasn't crazy, then backed away. Turning around, she looked over Pyrrha as she helped Jaune and Weiss off their chairs.

Cinder was sitting against the wall beside the doorway, her knees pressed to her chest. Her eyes were glazed over, and her hands were shaking on the floor. Ruby approached and crouched beside her.

"Cinder?" she called worriedly. "You there?"

Cinder nodded absently. A few seconds later, she blinked, and her eyes turned back to normal. She looked around, taking in the room, and slid down a little.

"That…" she muttered. "…was not fun."

"You remember what happened?" Ruby asked.

"I do." Cinder's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Where is he?"

Ruby was kind of glad Merlot had escaped now. Cinder was playing it cool, but Ruby could tell she was absolutely livid – maybe enough to do something Ruby would _not_ agree with.

"He escaped. The Geist possessed him, and he jumped off." Ruby looked back at the hole. "I mean, he made a window, then jumped off."

"Resourceful," Cinder said spitefully. She started to get up, but her legs failed her and she sat back down. "At least everyone's okay. And we'll be able to get what we came here for."

"I guess…" Ruby muttered. That was the last thing on her mind right now.

Weiss crouched beside them. Ruby sighed, expecting her to start talking about how she was right about Cinder – but instead, Weiss took some water from her canteen and gathered it on her hands.

"I hurt you pretty bad, didn't I?" she asked Cinder, in as neutral a tone as possible.

"Not really. I'm fine for the most part," Cinder said, puzzled. "Just a few bruises and scratches-"

Weiss paid her no mind, laying her hands on Cinder's arm, where a purple bruise was forming. Cinder looked at her in surprise, then turned to look at Ruby.

"Yay!" Ruby exclaimed, overjoyed. "We're all friends now!"

"We are _not_ friends," Weiss said through gritted teeth. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Ruby. And I'm still watching you, _Cinder_."

"That's alright." Cinder shrugged. "You're a good friend, Weiss."

The response only made the princess more furious.

* * *

Ruby, Jaune and Pyrrha left to scour the tower for the information on the Grimm, while Weiss and Cinder stayed at the top, tending to their wounds.

It didn't take long for them to find what they were looking for. Merlot and the Geist's leaving the tower seemed to have breathed new life into it. The windows scattered across it now let in real light, and the layout of it was much easier to understand than they had previously thought. Jaune soon found a little office at the northeastern section of the fifth floor, and there, a scroll sitting upon a table, as if waiting to be discovered.

"What's it say?" Ruby asked as they joined together in the office.

"Uh, stuff about crystals and… It's very technical." Jaune offered the scroll to Pyrrha. "You'll understand it better."

Pyrrha took a couple minutes to read through the scroll. When she was done, she lowered it, a frown on her forehead.

"Looks like whoever wrote it was in a real hurry… and maybe I'm just imagining it, but it doesn't seem _complete_ ," she said. "Anyway. Basically, there's a type of crystal the Grimm gather around. It's black and… 'evil', it says here, but how a crystal can be evil, I don't know…"

"A crystal?" Ruby looked at Jaune. "The crystal in the North Pole caverns! Remember? The Grimm were coming from there!"

"Excuse me?" Pyrrha looked at the two of them in confusion. "Never mind. You can fill me in later" She read the Scroll again. "The Grimm don't just gather around it. They – as you're saying, Ruby – they come from it. As in, they're born from it."

"Torchwick had a crystal! He tossed it and it became a Nevermore!" Ruby slapped her forehead in realization. "Everything makes sense now!"

"So, the Fire Nation is using these crystals to make Grimm." Jaune tilted his head dubiously. "And how are they controlling them?"

Pyrrha looked down at the scroll. "It doesn't say."

Ruby held back a sigh of frustration. She could have figured out the thing about the crystals, in time. But the issue of control… she hadn't even an inkling of an idea.

"Maybe Merlot had a point," Pyrrha said quietly. "Maybe the Fire Nation _isn't_ controlling the Grimm."

"So, what?" Jaune grinned nervously. "They're working together or something?"

No one said anything after that.

A few minutes later, they joined back with Weiss and Cinder at the bottom of the tower. When they shared their findings, Weiss was just as perturbed at Pyrrha's conclusion as they were.

"Surely, even the Fire Lord isn't that mad," she said. In a rare moment, she looked at Cinder for reassurance. "Right?"

"Honestly?" Cinder righted her quiver on her back and walked past, into the open area before the tower. "I wouldn't put it past her."


	33. The Walls of Stone

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Thirteen: The Walls of Stone**

* * *

The refugees came like a flood, crashing against the stone like the lasting waves of a storm. They weren't quiet – there was a myriad of sounds to be heard if you just payed attention, from the cries of children to the moans of the aged and tired. Never laughter, though.

It was disturbing, Yang thought, that she had grown used to it. Perhaps it was because she was one of them. But at least she wasn't alone. That was a small comfort.

"Stay near me, girls," her father said, looking around restlessly. The closer they got to the walls, the more suffocating being in the crowd became. "We don't want to get separated now. And watch the people around you."

Blake tapped Yang on the shoulder, then nodded towards an elderly gentleman up ahead. There was a little girl behind him, smiling wickedly, her hands so full of gold coins she couldn't part her fingers, lest they fall to the ground. The gentleman was unaware of her presence, it seemed.

"Oh, that's just… wrong." Yang scowled. "Really, stealing from refugees?"

"She's one too, I'm sure. And he's rather well-off, by the looks of things," Blake said. A moment later, she added, "I'm not defending what she's doing, but… We don't know the whole story."

"I guess there's nothing we can do about it," Yang said. "Let's watch our gold. Should be easy, seeing as we don't have any."

Blake smirked, eyeing the little girl. Noticing she had been caught, the thief turned and scampered off, disappearing in the crowd. "We can always track her down later and demand a share."

"Excuse me?" Yang looked at Blake in surprise. "Crime lord Blake over here, laying down the law."

Blake shrugged. Suddenly, she was lunged forward as a man came strutting past her, colliding against her shoulder. Yang caught her before she fell, and when she looked up, she saw the man looking back at them – more specifically, at Blake. There was something about his stare that was deeply unnerving to Yang.

Before she could demand he apologize, the man had turned around and left their sight. "What a jerk," Yang said, helping Blake stand. "Are you okay?"

Blake nodded wordlessly.

"Where is he going that he thinks he needs to walk so fast?" Yang asked. It was hard to sympathize with the refugees when half of them were so inconsiderate of others. "Hey, he didn't steal anything from you just now, did he?"

"No. It was just an accident," Blake replied quietly. "Let's keep walking."

Yang was still angry, but she decided to humor Blake and drop the subject. If Blake, the victim, wasn't upset, then there was no point to being outraged.

But Yang did notice that Blake was much quieter now – quieter than usual, that is. It was unlike her to keep her eyes to her feet like she was doing now, and her cat ears were pressed to the top of her head, nearly invisible amidst her dark hair. Yang would have missed them if she didn't know to look for them.

"You two okay?" Taiyang said, stopping to look over his shoulder. "What did I say about staying near me?"

"We're not children, Dad!" Yang protested. "Come on, Blake."

She took Blake's hand and walked forward briskly, catching up to and passing her father. They were very close to Vale now. Looking up, Yang could barely see the sky anymore over the gigantic stone walls that protected the city from the outside world. Yang imagined trying to climb over them, but just thinking about it made her stomach upset.

"Welcome to Vale. Let me say that to you, because no one else will," Taiyang said behind her. "Don't let our little sea of refugees deceive you. Vale is not a welcoming city, and neither are most of its people. It's been like that for centuries – hence the walls."

"What's the point of having stone walls in the capital of the Earth Kingdom?" Yang asked. "Couldn't an earthbender get inside if they really wanted?"

"Maybe, but that's like saying you could put out a forest fire all by yourself. Possible, but certainly not easy," Taiyang said. "Now imagine there's a hundred other firebenders reigniting every fire you put out. That's the stone walls of Vale."

"Well, right now I couldn't put out a matchstick if I wanted to, but I get the idea," Yang said bitterly.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to bring that up." He smiled apologetically at her. "Anyway, you only get inside the city if they want you there. And from there, it only gets more complicated…"

They walked on in silence, the crowd getting narrower as the refugees finally reached the gate entrance and were admitted, or not, into the city. Yang could see a group of soldiers in green now, doing quick checks of the refugees as they came. She was pleased to see almost everyone was allowed in. Maybe her father was remembering things wrong and the city wasn't _that_ bad.

When they reached the gate, they were directed to stand in front of one of the soldiers. He looked about the same age as Yang and Blake, but stood almost a head over both. The smug look on his face made Yang dislike him immediately.

"Good afternoon." He smiled lecherously, looking her up and down. "How can I help you today, gorgeous?"

Yang curled a fist, leering directly at his nose. It was so big, it would make an _excellent_ target…

A hand wrapped around hers, and Yang turned her head to look at Blake. The faunus tilted her head a little, warning her with her eyes, then let go and bowed her head again. Yang breathed out, putting aside her anger, though it was difficult.

"Hello," her father spoke up, getting between her and the soldier. "We'd like to get inside the city, if that's possible."

The soldier looked much less pleased to be talking to him. "And who's _we_?"

"I'm Lee. And this is my daughter…" Taiyang gestured proudly at Yang. "…Leena!"

Yang had to stop herself from slapping her own forehead. Her father had told them he had hatched a plan well in advance, but if this was what he was going with, she was pretty sure they were not going to get inside the city.

"And her?" The soldier nodded towards Blake.

"Ah. That one's my niece," Taiyang's voice dropped. "She and my sister were visiting when the invasion started. Our village was razed, and…" He shook his head sadly.

The boy didn't make a comment. Either he was used to hearing stories like that, or he just didn't care. Yang was fairly sure it was the latter.

"Alright, you can get in, just don't make trouble," he said, waving dispassionately at them. "There'll be someone to direct you. Well wishes and all that. Next!"

Yang rolled her eyes, following her father as he walked past the soldier. Just as they were about to get out on the other side of the gate, however, a faint cry made her turn around, startled.

Blake was several paces behind her, next to the soldier, who was staring furiously at her. He reached for the mace on his waist, but Blake backed away from his reach. She was hunched slightly, fingers spread like claws - poised to strike.

"Hey!" Taiyang shouted, walking back to Blake and staring down at the soldier. "What's going on here?"

"You thought you could sneak her past me, did you?!" the boy shouted back. "Well I caught you! Her kind is not allowed inside our city!" He spat at Blake's feet. "Vermin!"

Yang didn't remember how she got there, but suddenly she was right next to the soldier, catching him by the collar. "What did you call her?" she hissed. " _Say it again_!"

"You heard me!" he exclaimed. "Vermin!"

Yang let go of him and shoved him back, then thrust an arm out reflexively, as if to launch a fireball at him. Naturally, nothing happened. For a second, she only stared at her hand, then lowered it and walked backwards to join Blake, her cheeks burning. Everyone around them, soldiers and refugees alike, had stopped what they were doing to stare at her.

"You are keeping her out just because she's a faunus?" Taiyang asked, drawing the attention away from her. "I think you're breaking the law, buddy. You know, the thing you're supposed to be upholding?" His eyes narrowed. "The Queen signed the Faunus Rights Decree a decade ago. Get with the times."

"Well, the Queen is not here right now, is she?" the soldier grumbled. "I'm starting to think you and your daughter shouldn't get in, either. You roll around with the pigs, you ought to get dirty too…"

Taiyang cracked his knuckles. "You'd best find someone more sensible than you for me to talk to, boy, or else we'll see who will be rolling around-"

"That'll be me you want to talk to."

Taiyang turned around, nearly hitting his nose on another soldier's breastplate. This one had the same facial features and hair as the boy who was giving them trouble, except he was even taller.

"Cardin Winchester," the man said slowly, like a father scolding his child. "What's the issue here?"

"These two tried to sneak _her_ inside the city," the boy replied, smiling vindictively. He pointed a finger at Blake, and Yang had half a mind to break it right then and there. "When I stopped them – like I'm supposed to - _he_ started threatening me! So I'm thinking nobody gets in now!"

"Is that so?" The officer looked at him coldly. "Maybe he's unhappy because you're screaming and spitting at him like a lunatic. You're a human being, son, start acting like one and you'll get better results." He sighed. "You're relieved of duty for today. _Go_."

Cardin looked so crestfallen, Yang had to hold back from laughing at him. He hung around for a moment, glaring from Blake to Yang, before walking away.

"I'm sorry for the trouble," the officer said. "He's young."

"I understand. My kids cause me a lot of trouble too." Taiyang smiled. "Are we allowed in, then?"

"You and your daughter, yes." Winchester shook his head gravely. "As for her… I'm sorry to say my son wasn't making things up entirely. Faunus, for the moment, aren't allowed inside Vale."

"What?" Taiyang frowned. "I don't understand. Why is that?"

"There's… unrest in the city. It's in everyone's best interests that humans and faunus remain separated until matters are settled." He paused, turning to look at Blake. "The faunus refugees have set up a camp near here. You'll receive food and shelter there."

Blake's face hardened. " _Thank you_."

"So." Winchester turned to Taiyang. "In you go. The crowd's getting restless!"

Taiyang looked back at Yang and Blake, helpless.

"It's okay," Blake started. "I'll be fine on-"

"Actually, we're not gonna need passage after all," Yang interrupted her, facing the officer. "Your city stinks, anyway. Let's go."

She grabbed Blake's hand and turned around, leading her back into the crowd. Taiyang smiled and turned to officer Winchester, who looked like he'd just been punched in the face.

"You know… She's not wrong."

* * *

By the time they got free of the crowd and found the faunus camp, the sun was setting, and bonfires were starting to spring up in the darkening landscape. The camp was, to no one's surprise, located much farther than they had been led to believe, in a deep depression on the plains that could only be reached through a series of steep ramps. As they descended, they could see the tops of more than a hundred tents, and could hear the distant chattering of just as many people.

The sight of shelter did not lift their spirits. Yang was still fuming, unleashing a verbal tirade at officer Winchester and his son as if they were there to hear, and her father was following her example, though in a more subdued way. Blake, on the other hand, had not spoken a word since they'd left the gate entrance.

"I don't get it," Yang said, looking at her as if she were crazy. "Why can you be so quiet? Aren't you angry?!"

"I am. But it's okay," Blake spoke softly. "I'm glad you feel so strongly about this."

"Of course I do!" Yang snarled. "Stupid officer, with his stupid son. I'll show them who's vermin!"

Blake smirked, but that was the extent of emotion she deemed to share with them.

When they reached the entrance of the camp itself, they were greeted by a lone watchman. Like Blake, he had cat ears atop his head, though his were spotted. He got up, stretched a bit, then nodded at Blake.

"Heya," he greeted her. "Newcomer, yeah?"

"That's right." Blake bowed her head respectfully. "Do you have space for a night's sleep? I hate to ask…"

"'Course. Got plenty of space for plenty of nights! Ask around at the west end, someone'll help you out." He looked at Yang and her father and frowned. "Uh…"

"They're family," Blake said quickly. "If that's a problem, we'll find somewhere else."

"Oh, no! That's fine. That's fine." The guard shuffled uncomfortably. "Just, you know… Don't go strolling around in the open too much…"

"Sure. Thanks for the advice."

They entered the camp, Blake taking the lead. As soon as they stepped foot amidst the network of tents, Yang felt a dozen stares falling upon her from every direction. No matter where she looked, there was a faunus watching her. Some looked prepared to attack, others to flee. Not one of them looked relaxed. Yang wished she was anywhere else. She felt… dirty.

"Did he say west end?" Blake asked, looking back over her shoulder.

"That's it," Taiyang replied. "Over here, I think?"

They'd reached a section of the camp that looked much emptier, of people at least. There were still just as many tents set up, waiting for occupants, they assumed.

"Do we just… choose one?" Yang asked.

"Yep! It's the rule of the land over here!"

Yang jumped, startled by the new voice. Behind them stood a blond boy with a huge smile on his face. Behind him, a yellow tail waved lazily in the air. He was wearing an open white vest, exposing a set of abs that, for a second or two - or maybe ten – had Yang utterly transfixed.

"Hi," Blake said, breaking her trance. "We're looking for a place to stay."

"Well, duh, what else would you be doing here?" the boy snickered. "Yeah, you can just choose whatever tent you want. If it's empty, it's yours. Just gotta take care of what you leave there. I'm Sun, by the way."

"Blake. These are…" Blake faltered. "…my uncle Lee… and his daughter… Leena."

"Nice to meet you all." Sun looked at Taiyang. "Dude, did you seriously name your daughter after yourself like that?"

"What? No!" Taiyang looked around wildly. "My wife chose the name!"

" _Sure_ ," Sun said. He searched around the pockets of his vest and came out with a banana. "You guys hungry? I got bananas for days."

Blake looked at the banana critically. "No, thanks. Maybe later."

"Alright. If you want some company, I'm doing some crisped bananas near here in a couple hours. Just ask around for me." Sun waved at them with his free hand and left.

"Huh. What a charismatic fellow," Taiyang put his hands on his hips. "But what was that about the names I chose? I don't get what's so funny about them."

"Sir, you realize you _did_ name Yang after yourself?" Blake asked.

"What? No! I wasn't lying, it really was Raven who chose the name!" He looked from Blake to Yang, waiting for them to show any sign that they believed him. After a long, painstaking moment of silence, he turned and dived into his tent.

Blake shook her head lightly, then looked at Yang. "I'll be in the one next door, then," she said, and entered her chosen tent.

Suddenly alone, Yang looked around and found there were still some faunus staring at her. They weren't so close as to pose any danger, but that didn't make her any less uncomfortable. Trying to appear calm, Yang slowly backed away towards the tent next to Blake's and went inside.

* * *

The hours ticked by, and Yang did not know how to spend them. The tent was warm enough, and she had her sleeping bag to lay on, but she still felt restless and uncomfortable.

For a little while, she tried to do some basic firebending, but as usual, it didn't work in the slightest. She had been trying every day since the incident with the Grimm, which had been more than a week ago, but she had made no progress. Still, she wasn't about to give up. Only when she stopped trying altogether would her power truly be lost, and Yang intended to never get to that point.

She didn't hear anything from Blake, but that gave her no idea of how her friend was doing. Yang wished Blake was a little more open – with the way she was, Yang could rarely ever tell how Blake felt about anything. And with how confused Yang herself was, she could really use a friend to speak to right now.

After hours of just laying uselessly in her sleeping bag, Yang decided that was enough. She was hungry, and though she was nervous about going outside, she would go crazy if she didn't do something with herself soon. So she got up and exited her tent, then went over to Blake's.

"Hey," she said, looking inside. Blake sat up, having been reading a book on her side. "You hungry?"

"A little," Blake replied. "Your father must still have something on him."

"I was thinking we could take Sun up on his offer," Yang said hesitantly. "I know that guy said I shouldn't be walking around, but… I mean, Sun seems cool, right?"

"…I suppose." Blake put her book aside. "Okay, we can go. But you should stick close to me."

They went out and began searching around. There were a lot of bonfires set up through the camp, but they found Sun in none of them. Yang was glad to have Blake with her, as the stares seemed to only get worse in the darkness of night. She tried to find any humans amongst the faunus, to no avail. It was her and her father only, it seemed.

After going around the whole camp, they made their way back to the west end. As they neared their tents, Blake elbowed Yang lightly and gestured past them. There, sitting on a log beside a smaller bonfire than the rest, was Sun, waving at them.

They went over to him and sat down at the other side of the fire.

"Hey, Blake. Hey, Leena," he greeted cheerfully.

"Hi," Yang said awkwardly.

"Want some?" He took a stick he had fixed above the fire and waved it in front of their faces. A row of bananas dangled off it, turned a strange orange and smelling a little burned.

"Uh, sure." Yang took the stick and bit off one of the banana. She chewed on it slowly, expecting to have to spit it out in disgust. "Oh, wow. It's actually good. Very good! Blake, you need to have a taste of this!"

Blake twisted her nose dubiously, but took one of the bananas anyway. She bit a small part of it and chewed in silence. A few seconds later, she shrugged, and went on to eat the rest just as impassively.

"I'm glad you like them! They're my specialty." Sun smiled contently. "If you want more, I'll have some ready in a jiff."

"Thanks, Sun," Yang said, getting more at ease. "I'm surprised you're sitting alone. Don't people want your bananas?"

"Oh, yeah, usually there's dozens of people piling over me, asking for them. But I put a stop to that. Now I have a night every week where I make Sun Baked Bananas for all the refugees," he said. "I made an exception for you guys, though, 'cause you seemed cool."

"Cool?" Blake raised an eyebrow. "What about us is _cool_ , exactly?"

Sun blinked a few times, then took a banana and stuffed it in his mouth. As he chewed, he threw a discreet glance at Yang, before looking at the fire.

"I knew it." Blake got up. "Let's go, Leena. He's only interested because you're human."

"What?" Yang looked at Sun confusedly. "Is that true?"

"No! I mean, yes. But it's not like that!" Sun exclaimed. "It's just that I've never seen a human around here before, so I got curious. I don't have anything against you. Humans are cool – for the most part!"

"Well, then…" Yang looked up at Blake. "I don't really see the problem."

Blake looked at her, exasperated, before sitting back down. She glared mildly at Sun over the fire, making it clear that he was still not completely innocent in her eyes.

"Aaanyway…" Sun cleared his throat. "What's up, Leena? Why are you here?"

"Well, we were going to hide in the city. Myself, my dad and Blake. But Blake got stopped by some jerk at the entrance, so now we're here," Yang explained.

"Ah. I know who you're talking about, I think," Sun said. "Winchester, right? He's the Captain of the Vale Guard, and he's told all his people to stop any faunus from entering the city. It started a little bit after the Fire Nation invaded – that's why there are so many people here."

"My dad said they can't do this kind of stuff," Yang pointed out. "Because the Queen signed some decree."

Sun looked at her in surprise, then turned to face Blake. A moment later, his face returned to normal, and he smiled at Yang again, though she could see it was a bit forced.

"What?" She looked from him to Blake. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No. It's just that…" Blake bit her lip thoughtfully. "The Queen did sign a decree, but it's nearly useless. Just a symbolic gesture, really. A decree won't change people's minds, and when times get tough – like right now – no one's gonna care if faunus are mistreated. Not when the Fire Nation's knocking at our door."

"I mean, even when there's no one's invading, people look the other way," Sun said. "The invasion just made things worse."

"But that's…" Yang frowned. "I just don't get it. What's so wrong about being a faunus?"

"You tell me." Sun wiggled his tail over his shoulder. "I love being a faunus! But it's not really up to me to decide how people feel, now is it?"

Yang nodded. Now she understood why everyone was giving her dirty looks around the camp. If she were a faunus, she wouldn't trust any stranger human.

That thought made her realize just how unlikely her friendship with Blake was. She was not only a human, but a firebender – the princess of the Fire Nation! – and yet, Blake had trusted her, had gone with her to confront the Fire Lord herself. What had she done to deserve a friend like that?

"You talk of the refugees like you're not one of them," Blake said to Sun. "Why is that?"

"You're right, I'm not a refugee. Well, I _wasn't_. I guess I am now." Sun sighed. "I used to live _in_ Vale. Up until a few weeks ago, I used to go in and out of the city to bring food to the camp. Then that Winchester jerk told his guys to not allow me back in." He leered angrily at the distant city. "I even tried climbing over the wall, but they were waiting for me when I got to the top!"

"You climbed the wall?" Yang asked, amazed. " _How_?"

"I have great balance," Sun answered matter-of-factly. "The worst part is, now I can't get more bananas. I'm going to run out soon, and when I do, I think I'm going to be lynched from the camp."

"Well, if all you've got to offer is bananas, then you can only blame yourself," Blake said.

"Hey, I have a great sense of humor too!"

"Questionable."

They spent the next hour eating the rest of the bananas and chatting idly about less important matters. Yang had to be careful not to accidentally reveal her true identity. Sun was a sensible guy, but she wasn't sure how he would react if he discovered she was the former heiress to the enemy nation.

Blake mellowed out somewhat towards Sun, her remarks becoming less cutting, and more playful over time. By the end of their meal, she had even allowed a little laugh at one of his jokes. Yang was glad to see her relax for once.

"You know, I'm getting pretty tired," Yang said when they were finished. "Wanna head back, Blake?"

"Sure," Blake hesitated. "Thank you for the food, Sun."

"Hey, it was nothing. Just don't tell anyone, okay?" He flashed them a smile and winked.

Yang and Blake got up, and Sun gathered his sticks and started to put out the fire. Blake began walking away, but Yang stopped her.

"Hey, Sun," she asked. "Have any of you ever tried to, I don't know… invade the city? If sneaking in doesn't work, maybe some brute force's in order."

"Eh, some have suggested making a joint effort, but nobody feels safe actually going forward with any plan," Sun said. "I mean, we do have a lot of people, but the soldiers… well, they're _soldiers_. They have training and weapons. We're just outmatched."

"I guess you're right. But, and I know I'm in no place to speak…" Yang crossed her arms. "When something or someone stands in the way of something I want, I don't let that stop me. I try everything in my power to overcome that obstacle. Because, if I don't try, things aren't going to get any better, right?"

"I guess. That's how most of us feel." Sun shook his head in disappointment. "But determination alone is not going to get us inside the city. Even if we somehow got through to the other side, the guards would be waiting for us, and we can't beat them."

Yang sighed. As much as she wanted to help, it really seemed like there was no way to get over this situation. If she had her firebending, maybe she could fight the guards for the faunus. It would cost her her chance to take refuge in the city, but at least Blake and the others would get in.

"Wait," Blake said. "What if you had someone on the inside?"

"Someone on the inside?" Yang repeated. "You mean, that friend you're looking for? I thought you had lost contact."

"No, not him."

Yang frowned. She looked at Sun and was taken aback by the radiant expression on his face. She blinked and looked back at Blake. The cat-eared faunus met her stare and, with a little smirk, raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"Oh."

* * *

In three days, that spark of an idea transformed into a fully-fledged plan.

The basis was simple. Sun and Blake would lead the faunus refugees into the city, and Yang and her father would help from the inside. Things got complicated quickly from there, however.

First, they needed to figure out a way to get everyone from one side of the walls to the other, without being noticed. Staging a full-on assault on the gate was out of the question – there were too many soldiers there, as well as innocent refugees that could get hurt collaterally.

Climbing over the wall was another option that was discarded as soon as it was suggested. Not everyone was as agile or courageous as Sun. Even Blake doubted she could get all the way to the top. And they couldn't think of a way to get down to ground level after.

It was only when Sun started spreading word that they were forming a plan that the question was solved. A small group of earthbender faunus came to them during the second day and said they could tunnel a way through the walls, provided the guards were too distracted to stop them.

That was where Yang and Taiyang came in. They would enter the city and clear the area of the wall the refugees would emerge from. Alone, Yang doubted she could do the job without her bending, but with her father at her side, she was confident everything would go perfectly.

The biggest problem they faced was where everyone would go once they were all inside. By that point, almost everyone in the camp was in on the plan, and many started to pitch ideas. Some of the faunus used to live in or frequent the city, and they suggested many family houses and venues that could serve as hiding places.

After many long conversations, everyone was organized in groups according to where they would hide after the break-in – except Yang, Taiyang and Blake. Though some of the faunus were grateful that they had enabled the plan, absolutely none offered them a place in their group.

Luckily, Sun could help them with that problem.

"I know a place you can hunker down at," he said at the end of the third day. "I used to live there with some friends of mine, but they left for the west islands when things got bad. You can stay there as long as you like."

"Thanks, Sun," Yang said. "I don't know what we would have done without you."

"Trust me, Leena, it's the least I can do to thank you." Sun patted her on the shoulder warmly.

"Uhm, I should tell you…" she sighed. "My name's not actually Leena. It's Yang."

"Really? You have a secret name? That's so cool!" Sun beamed at her. "And what's your dad's name?"

"It's Taiyang."

"…Seriously?"

* * *

The next day, Yang and her father got through the gate easily. Captain Winchester was there, inspecting the incoming refugees, and though he was rather curious about Blake's absence, he let them pass without giving them trouble.

They entered the outer ring of the city, and Yang couldn't believe what she was seeing. She hadn't been expecting anything luxurious, but what she found fell way below her already short expectations. The houses were old, dirty and falling apart, infringing on their neighbors' spaces without any rhyme or reason. The streets were overcrowded, with rabbit-rats and insects skittering on the ground. Refugees were everywhere, wearing miserable faces, looking painfully hungry.

"Dad," Yang whispered as they made their way through the crowd, heading east. "What is this? I thought Vale was supposed to be the shining capital of the Earth Kingdom."

"And it is. For some," Taiyang said. "This is the Outer Ring. The home of the poor and the lost, the criminals and the vagabonds. A place to be forgotten along with its people." He shook his head in disapproval. "Then there's the Middle Ring, for the folks that are living a good, hardworking life. And after that, the Inner Ring."

"Where the Queen and her people live," Yang said, grinding her teeth. "You know, the more I hear about this woman, the less I like her. Signing useless decrees, turning a blind eye to her own suffering citizens…"

"The Queen is just one person. She can't undo in a lifetime what's been in place for a hundred," Taiyang noted. "Besides, this isn't that different than any big city in the world. What, do you think everyone lives perfect lives back home?"

"There is no _Outer Ring_ crap in Vacuo," Yang stated.

Taiyang gave her a humoring smile and kept walking.

A few minutes later, they reached their destination. It wasn't that distant from the entrance gate, just enough to not be in the immediate area of the main bulk of the Guard. They would have chosen a point even further away to make the tunnel, but then they would run the risk of being detected by more sentinels atop the walls – and they didn't want to break in too close to the Middle Ring too.

They sat on the street, waiting. Yang passed the time trying to firebend – discreetly, of course – but she still couldn't release even the tiniest of embers.

Finally, night fell, and they rose to their feet. There was a tower on the wall nearby, through which they could get to the top. They reached the doors, paused to look at each other, then went in.

Inside, they were met with the sight of a half-dozen soldiers sitting around a table, all concentrating deeply on a card game. Yang stared at them for a moment, wondering if they were ever going to notice them. After almost a whole minute had passed, she cleared her throat, and one of them finally looked up.

"Hey!" he shouted. "What are you two doing here? This is Guard property!"

"It is?" Yang looked at her father. "Oh, no… I think we have made a mistake…"

"A terrible, foolish mistake…" Taiyang nodded slowly.

The soldier waved them off. "Then get outta here already!"

Yang and Taiyang looked at each other. "…Nah."

Without warning, Yang rushed forward, grabbing one of the soldiers' lance, which had been leaning against the table. She spun in above her head once, then slammed the blunt end of it on two of the soldiers' heads, knocking them out instantly. Another got up from his chair, but she poked him in the stomach, then punched him down.

While the others scrambled to their feet, Taiyang sped past his daughter and jumped onto the table, sliding across its length. As he left the table, he spread his legs out, kicking two of the soldiers onto a nearby wall. He rolled on the ground and got up, immediately grabbing the remaining soldier by the arm and throwing him to Yang, who spun in place, slamming her arm on the side of his face, dropping him like a sack of potatoes.

"Neat," Yang said, looking around at their handiwork. "Who needs firebending anyway?"

"Don't get cocky. We had the element of surprise," Taiyang noted. "Let's hide them before someone shows up."

They found a broom closet and tossed the unconscious soldiers inside, then went to the round stairways that lead to the top of the walls. Yang let her father go first, just in case they needed a little bit of firepower. At the end of the steps, they were faced with a trapdoor. Taiyang looked back and put a finger on his lips, then carefully opened the way.

They got out quietly, bending low in case anyone was looking their way. Wind struck Yang in the face and filled her ears with a deceptively loud noise, and as she looked ahead, she realized she was scarily close to the edge of the wall. She looked down and backed off immediately, a lump forming in her throat.

"You go that way," Taiyang said, pointing to the right. "I'll go this way. Meet back in five minutes. Okay?"

Yang nodded. She had never been more grateful for her father's presence than she was now. If she were alone, she would have remained frozen on the spot and probably ruined the plan, leaving everyone on the ground confused as to what had happened.

Taiyang left, and she went to the right, taking careful steps. The noise of the wind was unnerving, never letting her forget how high up she was. If she fell, what would happen? Would anyone try to help her? Probably not, as she would not survive the drop…

She was so scared, she didn't realize there was a guard ahead of her until she'd almost collided against him. Thankfully, he hadn't noticed her either, too focused on watching the fields outside. Yang breathed in and tightened her grip on her borrowed lance, then stood up and swung.

She was trembling, so her aim was less than ideal. The lance hit the soldier's shoulder, causing him to falter and gasp in pain and surprise. For a moment, Yang and him just looked at each other, bewildered. He opened his mouth, and Yang knew he was about to scream for help. Suddenly, her fear all but evaporated, and she swung her lance again, this time hitting the man in the head and knocking him out.

"Sorry," she whispered, patting him on the chest. "You'll get better."

Yang walked onward with newfound confidence, not hesitating at all anymore as she walked atop the walls. She found three more sentinels and knocked them out without a hitch, then doubled back to meet her father.

She arrived back at the tower first, but didn't have to wait for long. Taiyang returned a minute later, looking a little flustered. "Sorry. Tripped. Almost fell."

Yang's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"No, I'm just messing around," he said, smiling.

"You jerk!" Yang huffed. "Just give the signal already."

Taiyang nodded and pointed a hand upward, shooting a spiraling fire that, for a brief moment, lit up the sky above the city.

"There," he said. "Now we wait."

* * *

When the sun set, Blake, Sun and the faunus refugees left the camp, staying clear of the entrance gate. The darkness hid them from anyone watching from afar on the walls, but it was no hindrance to them. One thing every faunus had in common was the ability to see in the night.

They stopped a safe distance away from the walls and lied down, silent in their waiting. Everyone was anxious, but no one more than Blake. Her worries didn't stop with the success of the plan. In fact, she cared much more about the safety of Yang and her father. She had no way of knowing whether they had gotten into the city, or been captured outright – or worse. It was selfish of her, but she was starting to wish she had never suggested their participation in the break-in.

Just as she was about to lose hope, a fire flashed in the sky, so briefly she could have easily missed it had she not been waiting for it. Sun stirred beside her.

"Is that the signal?" he asked, disbelief evident in his voice.

"Yes, that's it." Blake turned around and gestured for the first row of refugees. "Earthbenders first!" she whispered. "Then wait ten seconds, and the next row goes! You know the rest!"

The earthbenders signaled their understanding, then ran past her. Before they reached the wall, they paused briefly and made an identical gesture with their arms. The stone morphed before them, parting into a tunnel wide enough for them to stand inside shoulder-to-shoulder.

As the rows of faunus followed as planned, entering the tunnel after the earthbenders, Sun turned to Blake. "How did they make that fire?" he asked quietly. "They're not… ooh, they _are_!"

"Sun! Don't say it out loud," Blake hissed. "They're good people, okay?"

"Well, duh. I know. They're helping us, aren't they? That's way more than most people would do," Sun said. "How did you meet them, anyway?"

"It's a long story." Blake stood up. "The last row's gone. Let's go."

She ran for the wall, Sun following close behind her. They entered the tunnel, rejoining the refugee group. As soon as they stopped, the wall closed behind them, leaving them completely blind. In such darkness, even faunus couldn't see.

"Wait," Sun said. "That wasn't part of the plan, was it?"

"Why aren't we moving?" someone yelled. "Come on! Get back to work, people!"

"We can't! The stone – it's not giving way!" one of the earthbenders shouted. "I think… I think someone's overpowering our bending!"

"Can you open the way back?" Blake asked, struggling to raise her voice over the general panic that ensued.

"We can't! It's the same thing! They have us surrounded!"

"Just keep trying!" a kid yelled, sobbing loudly.

Blake leaned against a wall, suddenly feeling breathless. She felt Sun touch her shoulder.

"Relax, Blake. We're gonna get out of here," he said, his voice shaking. "They… they can't keep us trapped here forever…"

But Blake knew they most certainly could.

* * *

"Why aren't they getting out?"

Yang had been afraid of saying it. Once the words were out, it made the fear tangible, especially when her father didn't immediately contest them. This was real. Something had gone horribly wrong.

"I don't know," Taiyang said quietly. "Maybe they changed their minds?"

"We saw they go in."

"Then the tunneling is taking longer than expected."

"It's been almost ten minutes!"

"Damnit. Let's go down. There has to be something we can do."

They got up from their perch on the edge of the wall and went to the trapdoor to the tower. As quietly as they could, they started going down the stairs. When they reached the soldiers' room, nothing had changed. The cards were still on the table, and faint snores could be heard from the broom closet.

Taiyang nodded towards the door to the outside and, after a moment's waiting, opened it. He immediately regretted it, as they were met with a full squad waiting on the street, Captain Winchester standing chief among them. A trio of buff earthbenders were positioned a little farther, their hands pointed at the wall. The stone was shaking violently, as if two invisible forces were fighting to have control of it.

"Well now! It seems my suspicions were correct!" Winchester declared triumphantly. "When you showed up without that cat, I just _knew_ you were up to something! And here we are now – you, caught in the act – the vermin, stuck where they belong!"

"You lunatic! Release them now!" Taiyang yelled. "They're going to run out of air, if they haven't already!"

"And how unfortunate would that be!" Winchester clucked his tongue. "I really have to thank you. Those animals have been harassing me for months, more arriving every day, demanding to get inside the city – and all I could do was turn them away! But you've given me the perfect opportunity to get rid of them once and for all – and the Queen will never know anything about it!"

"You're despicable. Worse than that, you're a monster," Taiyang said, taking a firm stance. "Yang, stand back."

"Dad, don't-"

But he didn't listen to her. With a wave of his arms, he conjured a wall of fire that showered upon the soldiers, who could only duck and run in terror.

"Firebender!"

"Stop him!"

" _RUN!_ "

Taiyang shouted angrily, launching a stream of fire at Winchester. The captain raised his shield in front of him, his eyes seeming like they were about to pop off their sockets.

With her father distracting the Guard, Yang turned and ran towards the earthbenders. If she could take out just one them, then they were surely going to lose the battle against the faunus inside the walls – but before she could get to them, someone appeared in her path.

"Hey, sunshine!" Cardin shouted, swinging his mace at her. "Nice to meet you again!"

Yang ducked under the blow, the air that it displaced hitting her in the face. Standing back up, she swung a punch – but to her surprise, Cardin dodged neatly.

"What? I'm more than good looks, you know!" he laughed.

He swung again, and this time the mace hit Yang right in the arm. She screamed and fell to her knees, holding the limb in agony. Something had broken just now, she was sure of it.

"This is what you get for helping filth," Cardin said, standing over her. "Maybe we should throw you inside there with them, since you like them so much."

Yang grit her teeth. Cardin's words distracted her from the pain – inside the walls, a hundred faunus were fighting against the stone, desperate for air. Maybe some had already lost the fight. Among them was Blake.

And Yang couldn't imagine a world without Blake.

"Eat your words, Winchester," Yang said, looking up at him with red eyes. She rose to her feet and swung with her good left arm – and her hand ignited as it connected against his cheek.

The strength of the blow sent Cardin flying. He hit a house and fell on the floor, clutching his face and moaning in pain. His mace hit the floor where he had previously been.

Ignoring her pain, Yang picked up the mace and marched towards the earthbenders. Screaming, she raised it above her head, then slammed it against the first earthbender's knee. The man shouted and fell, clutching his knee.

With one man down, it took no time for the earthbender soldiers to lose their battle. Suddenly, the wall parted, and faunus came running out. Some fell to their knees, gasping for air, while others kept running, headed towards their planned hideouts.

"Yang!" Blake appeared beside Yang. She made to touch her, but stopped herself when she saw the state of Yang's arm. "What happened?"

"Winchester happened," Yang groaned. "It's been taken care of."

Blake looked at her limp arm. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Don't worry about me," Yang said. "We need to get away."

Blake nodded, looking around. "Sun! Where are you?!"

A few moments later, Sun skidded to a halt beside them. He threw a banana peel on a soldier's face, then turned to face them.

"Alright, let's go!" he exclaimed, jumping up and down. "Where's Firebending Dad?"

"Mister Xiao Long!" Blake called.

Taiyang stopped his assault on the soldiers and ran to them. He looked at Yang, then at the fallen Cardin, and nodded approvingly.

"Okay, everyone's here – follow me!" Sun shouted, and they ran away from the chaotic scene.

* * *

Hours later, Blake could still hear patrols scouring the streets of the Outer Ring, searching for the invading refugees. Luckily, they had planned well – it sounded like no one had been captured so far. Their own place of hiding was serving them excellently. Since it was located above a small cliff overlooking most of the Outer Ring, it was unlikely any soldiers would bother to come up to check out the house. They would probably think it was too much of a hassle.

The house was also surprisingly spacious. They each got a room of their own, and there was also a small kitchen and a living room. Maybe it was a little crammed, but it was far better than everything else they had seen in this part of the city.

Sun wouldn't be staying with them, though. He had to check on his banana stock and on some local friends of his. He hadn't heard anything from them for weeks, obviously, so he was quite worried.

"But I'll visit soon, I promise," he told Blake in front of the house. "Maybe tomorrow. As soon as I've got everything under control."

"You make it sound like you're a busy person," Blake said. "You don't deceive me, Sun."

"Sure. Keep that attitude, then try and ask me for a loan later," Sun replied mysteriously. "Anyway. You mentioned you were looking for a friend, right? I can ask around, if you want. What's his name?"

Blake bit her lip, considering Sun's offer. She wasn't too keen about sharing information like that, but Sun had proven to be trustworthy. And he was familiar with the city – if anyone was going to help her out, it would be him.

"It's Adam. Adam Taurus. He's a bull faunus," Blake said. "If you find him, tell him I got found his letter."

"Okay," Sun swished his tail. "I sure hope it wasn't a love letter! Haha!"

Blake glared at him. Realizing she wasn't going to stop anytime soon, Sun turned around and left, disappearing in the streets below.

Satisfied, Blake entered the house, locking the door behind her. She looked around, feeling a little lost in such a homely space. After a while, she decided to go to her room and sleep for what little remained of the night – but on the way there, she stopped on Yang's door.

After a moment's hesitation, she knocked. Yang didn't take long to respond, opening the door a little to look. "Hey," Blake said. "Not asleep yet?"

"Nope. Come in."

Blake entered the room. Yang had already set her bed and put her few belongings on display – the Grimm Lady mask, her sword, and… a child's drawing of a dog?

"Uh, that's nothing." Yang swiped the paper out of her view. "Anyway. What's up?"

"Nothing. I'm just checking in on you." Blake looked at Yang's arm. Her father had improvised a sling for her from some old bandages and pieces of cloth, but it seemed to be working well enough. "Does it still hurt?"

"Yeah, but it's nothing I can't handle," Yang said. "Dad says I just need to not put stress on it and it'll heal just fine." She smiled. "A little pain is definitely worth the beating I gave that little jerk."

"Oh, I wish I had gotten to see that. I wish I had been the one to do it!" Blake said. "Did you really firebend back there?"

Yang sat at the edge of her bed and looked down at her good arm, flexing her fingers. "I did. But I haven't been able to do it again since."

Blake patted her arm sympathetically. "That's too bad. But I'm sure-"

"Too bad?!" Yang looked up at her, bewildered. "Are you joking? This is _very_ good news! It means I still have my stuff! I just have to figure out how to access it. And with my arm being out of commission, I'll have a lot of time to come up with creative solutions!"

Blake nodded. She couldn't say she was surprised Yang had taken the development so well. It was typical of her, really, to turn something that seemed bad into something good.

"Yang… Thank you."

"Hmm?" Yang looked at her quizzically. "What for? For being awesome?"

"No. For…" Blake paused, searching for the right words. "Just for being a good friend, I guess." She bowed her head. "I haven't had a lot of those, and I really took a chance with you. You… haven't disappointed. So, thank you. I mean it."

Yang stood up and faced her. Blake looked up, swaying slightly on the balls of her feet. She didn't quite know what to expect, but…

"Hug me."

Blake blinked. "What?"

"My arm's useless, so I can't hug you. I also can't hug you back," Yang said, completely serious. "Just initiate it and we'll share some good feelings. It won't be awkward at all."

Blake tilted her head dubiously. She was almost certain Yang was joking.

She hugged her anyway.


	34. The Earth Queen

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Fourteen: The Earth Queen**

* * *

"Guys, is that it? Please tell me I'm not seeing things," Jaune said, rubbing his eyes for good measure. "Is that… _Vale_?"

"It is!" Ruby yelled, jumping and landing on his shoulders haphazardly, nearly knocking him over. "We're here! Finally!"

"It hasn't been that long," Weiss said dryly. "We left the North Pole just four months ago."

"Whaat?" Ruby looked at her in disbelief. "It feels more like a whole year!"

"Pff. Nonsense," Weiss shook her head lightly. "We would have to be severely incompetent to take that long to get from there to here."

Ruby shrugged. She didn't mind how much time had passed, not anymore. They had finally arrived in Vale! She was getting excited just looking at the approaching walls. Somewhere behind those was the Earth Queen, the person that was going to help them drive back the Fire Nation once and for all.

"Don't get too excited," Cinder said, staring sharply at the city. "Take a good look. We might have some trouble getting inside."

Ruby got off Jaune – who nearly fainted in relief – and followed Cinder's gaze. She immediately realized what Cinder was referring to. At the bottom of the walls was a gate that led into the city, but it was currently occupied by a huddled mass of people. Ruby heard distant shouts and the clinging of metal, and instinctively she reached for her staff.

"Don't." Cinder caught her wrist. "They're only refugees."

"Oh." Ruby frowned. Weeks of traveling with the fear of stray Grimm and Fire Nation patrols had conditioned her to fight at the slightest notice – but this was not the time for that, clearly. "All those people are refugees? But… how can that be? We won the back at the Rift!"

"That was just one victory, Ruby," Weiss said. "It shifted the momentum of the war, but it certainly didn't end it."

"If anything, people are more afraid now than ever before," Cinder added. "A defeat would have been devastating, but a victory means the war goes on even longer. And the more drawn-out a war is, the more collateral damage happens."

Ruby bowed her head solemnly. Ever since the Battle of the Rift, she had felt like they were finally on the right track to end the war, but she hadn't thought about the smaller effects of that fateful day. Now she felt quite badly about it – what kind of Avatar was she, so easily forgetting about the people she was supposed to be protecting?

"Don't feel guilty," Cinder said firmly, drawing even beside her. "You can't protect everyone. And letting the Fire Nation win would have made things even worse for these people. You did the best you could."

"Did I?" Ruby said. "I could have done more… The Fire Lord was there during the battle, wasn't she? If I had gone after her…"

"You would have gotten killed!" Weiss interrupted furiously. "Get that idea out of your head! You tried it once before, remember? You were lucky the Fire Lord let you go unscathed."

"Yeah…" Ruby sighed. "You two are right, it's not like there was anything else we could have done. I mean, despite the refugees and the Grimm and all that, I think we're actually doing pretty good!" She smiled, her eyes sparkling with renewed determination. "And if we want to make things better, I guess all we need to do is talk to the Earth Queen, and that's what we've come to Vale for!"

"That's more like the usual Ruby," Weiss said, nodding. "Everything will be fine. Right, Cinder?"

Cinder didn't reply immediately. She didn't seem to have been paying much attention, which was rather unusual for her – but Ruby supposed she was as tired as everyone else after all the travelling.

"Yes," Cinder said, her gaze returning to Ruby. "Believe in yourself, and you can do anything."

"Uh, okay," Ruby blinked, turning to look at Weiss. "She's really dramatic sometimes, isn't she?"

Weiss raised an eyebrow at her. "You're only now noticing?"

* * *

"Daaaaaaaaad! Heeeelp!"

Taiyang dropped the bundle of clothes on his bed and ran out of his room, nearly tripping and breaking his neck as he raced down the steps of Sun's house to reach the entrance room. He looked around and saw the end of Yang's legs sticking upward from behind a sofa and jumped there, panicking.

"What?!" he nearly yelled. "Are you hurt? Did you rebreak your arm or something? Did you put something on fire?!"

"Nope," Yang said simply, looking up at him, upside-down. "I'm hungry." She waved at him with her good hand, while her broken arm laid lazily against her stomach. "Need food."

Taiyang's face darkened. "Let me get this straight. You yelled for me from the other end of the house, like you were in mortal danger… because you're hungry?" He huffed. "I thought you were dying!"

"But I _am_ dying." Yang pouted. "Dying of an empty tummy. Food, please?"

"Are you serious?" He shook his head. "You could have gotten food yourself. Just get up from the sofa and walk to the kitchen."

"But can't you see I'm _injured_?"

Yang made a pained expression and curled up a little, moaning exaggeratedly. Taiyang just stared at her emotionlessly for a moment, then turned and walked away.

"I'm going to work."

Yang sat up and turned to look at him, dropping the act shamelessly. "Work?" she repeated. "What are you talking about?"

"I got a gig here at the lower ring. I'm pretty sure the guy who hired me is half-blind, because he didn't recognize me from the wanted posters. Or maybe he hired me _because_ I'm on a wanted poster." Taiyang paused for a moment, humming thoughtfully. "Anyway. It's just lifting some heavy stuff, carrying boxes, that kind of thing."

"Okay." Yang frowned. " _But why_?"

"What do you mean, why?"

"Why did you get a job?"

Taiyang turned slowly, hoping his daughter was joking. But no, she was looking at him as if he had presented her with the greatest mystery in the history of the world. "Because… we need food. And to get food, we need money," he said patiently. "And to get money…" He tilted his head, giving her the opportunity to finish for him.

"…Okay," Yang sank a little on the sofa. "But… do _I_ need to work too? Because that sounds like a lot of… err… work?"

Taiyang couldn't find a proper response to that. He would be embarrassed for her, if he weren't so amazed instead. That was an impressive lack of sense for a girl as smart as her.

He was saved the need of replying by Blake, who came down the stairs at that moment, looking more than a little puzzled. "Good morning," she said. "What are you two talking about?"

"Dad's going to work," Yang said, as if the concept was truly fascinating to her. "Maybe _I_ should get a job…"

"…Right," Taiyang said. "I'll be going now. Blake, do me a favor and educate my daughter on the basics of modern society."

Blake's eyes widened, but before she could say anything in protest, he turned and left the house through the front door, leaving her standing perplexed in the entrance room. A moment later, Yang got up and walked to her, patting her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, Blake. My dad's very gullible, and I'm an excellent actor," she said, going to the kitchen. "Of course I know what jobs are. I mean, I'm spoiled and all that, but I'm not _that_ out-of-touch with reality."

Blake followed her, amused. "I admire your honesty."

"Thanks! I'm very proud of it myself!" Yang exclaimed cheerfully.

She started going through the drawers and cupboards of the kitchen in search of something to eat. When all she had to show in the end was a couple of apples and a half-eaten slice of cream cake, her bright expression turned sour.

"Oh, man… We really are in trouble…" she muttered. "Man, poverty _sucks_! I don't wanna get a job!" She turned to Blake. "Tell me I don't have to get a job."

Blake shrugged. "Sorry." She smirked. "Now I understand why you say you're spoiled."

"Hey! I resent that," Yang said. "How difficult would you say it is to get a job?"

"I don't know. It's usually very complicated," Blake said. "For a start, the opportunity is not going to come looking for you. You need to go out there and find it yourself."

Just as she finished speaking, they heard the front door open, and a moment later Sun appeared, eaten a banana sprayed with pepper. He leaned on the kitchen doorway and looked at them, his tail swinging slyly behind him.

"Hey. You two ever thought of being waitresses?"

Yang looked at Blake, smiling widely. Blake could only sigh.

"For the record, this is _not_ how the process usually goes."

* * *

Going through the gate was as troublesome as they had expected. The process was particularly difficult for Ruby, who was more than a little uncomfortable amidst the mass of refugees. Weiss had to stop her several times from going to help one person or another, eventually growing so annoyed that she asked for Pyrrha to contain her – and that was why Ruby currently found herself being carried over the earthbender's shoulder.

"Sorry," Pyrrha said to her for the fourth time since.

"She brought this on herself," Weiss noted, looking back at them pointedly.

Ruby groaned. "She's right…"

They kept walking, seemingly getting nowhere in the crowd. Ruby closed her eyes, trying to vent her frustration by doing some impromptu meditation, but her surroundings were too loud for that, and the position she was in didn't help either.

After a few minutes, she started to feel they were moving faster, but when she opened her eyes, she realized she was mistaken. They hadn't gotten much further, it was Pyrrha who was turning constantly and tapping her feet on the ground, looking around with an anxious expression on her face.

"Pyrrha?" Ruby called. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Pyrrha said. "I'm looking for… Nevermind. It's silly."

"What?" Ruby tried to hoist herself up, wishing she could face Pyrrha. "Come on, I'm bored here. And you know I won't judge!"

"I'm wondering if my parents are here, or anyone from my village," Pyrrha replied hesitantly. "They were planning to evacuate when we were leaving, remember?"

"Right. But that was a long time ago," Ruby said. "They must have arrived here well before us. I bet they're safe and sound inside the city!"

"I hope you're right. If something happened to them and I wasn't there, I don't know what…" Pyrrha's voice trailed off, and she stopped fidgeting as she had been before, her eyes now glued to the back of Weiss' neck in front of her.

Ruby wished she could say something to make her friend feel better, but she had a feeling it wouldn't be so easy to ease Pyrrha's mind. This was new territory to Ruby. Jaune had never expressed any concerns about leaving his family, and Weiss' only relative she cared for was Winter, who needed no one to protect her. But Pyrrha loved her parents dearly and had protected her village for nearly all her life. To leave all that behind so suddenly…

Ruby's mind wandered to her own family. It was still strange to think she had one again, after years of thinking she was all alone. Was Qrow safe, wherever he'd ended up after the Battle of the Rift? And what about Yang and Taiyang? The last time she'd seen them was at the North Pole, and she hadn't known they were related then. She hoped they were doing well, but she knew that was wishful thinking.

"Yeah, like I said," Jaune's voice woke her from her thoughts. "I'm with the Avatar."

" _Right_. And I'm the Earth King."

"I'm serious!" Jaune insisted. "She's right there – just look!"

"What's happening?" Ruby asked, squirming in Pyrrha's hold.

"Jaune is talking to the guards, trying to get us inside. He's… having some trouble," Pyrrha explained. "Weiss is giggling behind his back, which I think is very mean… and also a little disturbing," she added bitterly.

"What about Cinder?" Ruby asked. "Just tell her to take over, we'll be here all day at this rate!"

"Oh, I'm enjoying the show too," Cinder said, appearing beside them with a smile on her face.

"You are all unbelievable," Pyrrha sighed. "Here. You're free to go, Ruby."

She put her down on her feet, and Ruby held back a victorious shout. She went to Jaune's side and leaned on his shoulder, smiling to the guard he was talking to.

"Hey," she said. "Avatar here, just passing by."

The soldier stared at her blankly for a good while, then shook his head and stepped aside, waving them through. Ruby gave him a thumbs-up as they passed.

"You could have helped!" Jaune said, turning to glare at Weiss.

"I could have, yes." Weiss joined her hands coyly and smiled. "I just didn't _want to_."

He shook his head and turned to look at Cinder, intending to chastise her for not helping him either – but the words died in his throat when she leaned towards him, her eyes narrowing, as if daring him to carry on.

Jaune cleared his throat. "Yeah, good thing we're in. Let's, uh, let's go!" He made an awkward little curtsy, then marched after Ruby.

They walked through the gate entrance, all very relieved to get out of the crowd, able to stretch their limbs and breathe fresh air once again. But before they reached the end of the gate, another soldier approached them.

"Avatar! Here, with me!" he beckoned, and Ruby followed, surprised. "I apologize for the inconvenience! If we had known you would be arriving today, we would have turned away the crowd for your sake!"

"Uh, I'm happy you didn't, actually," Ruby said, a little irked by that remark. Maybe he was flustered and had gotten some words mixed up? "I mean, these people need help a lot more than me…"

"Of course! Just a turn of phrase!" the officer bellowed. "Anyway, you won't need to deal with any more hindrances. You'll have a shuttle ride to bring you directly to the Earth Palace!"

"Shuttle ride?" Ruby repeated hesitantly. "But I like walking, and I want to see the city. Can't we just-"

He walked away, not giving her a chance to finish.

"Well that was rude," Weiss said, crossing her arms.

"And terribly unsurprising. The Queen, and everyone under her - they will be very selective about which parts of the city Ruby sees," Cinder said. "It wouldn't do for her to see something she wasn't meant to."

"Is that so? And how did you come to that conclusion?" Weiss asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"The maneuver isn't very subtle, and you might remember I have some experience with people in high places," Cinder said. She looked at the officer, who had stopped walking once he realized they weren't following him, and was now gesturing at them to catch up. "Or maybe I'm too much of a cynic." She shrugged. "Shall we go?"

Ruby frowned. Why wouldn't the Earth Queen want her to see Vale? Wasn't she proud of her own city? How strange… She supposed she would find out the answer to that mystery soon enough.

* * *

"Yeah, I know, I know, it's not really that big of a thing, but… It's cool, right? And the business does great! We broke the sales record a couple months ago – before the guys left and I was locked out of the city – but now I can get back to work, and with some help, we're gonna do even better!"

If Yang could find her breath, she would have responded, but she was too stunned by what she was looking at right now. Of all things Sun could have shown them, she hadn't expected _this_. Maybe a little stall at the corner of a street, or some decrepit old house… But no, he had a place as big as a rich person's house, with several tables for customers and a kitchen at the back that could rival some she remembered from the Fire Nation.

"Sun, is this some kind of joke?" Blake asked, just as floored as Yang. Her eyes were scanning the ceiling slowly, as if expecting to find someone laughing at them from above.

"Uh, no," Sun said, rubbing the back of his head self-consciously. "Sorry, I know this must come as a surprise… I'm very proud of what I got here, but if you don't wanna have anything to do with it, that's fine. I won't hold it against you."

"Are you kidding!" Yang exclaimed, finding her voice at last. "This is amazing, Sun! You _should_ be proud!" she walked past him, spinning around to take everything in once again. "How did you get this place?"

"I bought it," Sun said. "I mean, _we_ bought it. Me and my best pals – Scarlet and Sage. You'd be surprised how well the banana business does in the big cities," he blinked. "By the way, that's the name of our restaurant. Banana Business. We were going to have it be Monkey Business, but the guys were uncomfortable with that, for whatever reason."

He flicked his tail, then went walking towards the kitchen. Yang looked back at Blake, raising an eyebrow, then went after him.

"I've already gotten hold of our old cooks and suppliers in the city. That's what I've been doing this last week. I'm sure you were wondering about that," he said. "But not everyone could come back. One of the waitresses hurt her ankle pretty bad slipping on a banana – not work-related, mind you – and won't be able to work for a while. And our guard dude had an epiphany and decided he wanted to be an artist. He's a pretty good painter, actually, but it still sucks that he left."

"I guess that's where we come in? You want us to fill in for the people you lost," Yang said. "I'm in. I fell kinda bad Dad is having to work to keep us fed, so I want to help out. Plus, work is supposed to build character or something."

"I suppose I could use some work too," Blake said, less eagerly. "This business is faunus-friendly, right?"

"I'm the boss, so yeah. And I find that people are very quick to put aside their racist views when they want a chocolate sprayed banana," Sun said. "Blake, you're going to be the guard, obviously."

" _Obviously_? What is that supposed to mean?" Blake asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Because of that look you just gave me," Sun replied matter-of-factly, then turned to Yang. "And you are going to be the waitress. You have all the attributes for the job!"

"Okay, what is _that_ supposed to mean?" Yang asked fiercely, Blake nodding in support behind her.

Sun looked at her nervously, then turned away. "You have, err… you have that radiant personality, you know? Charming and all that. You're a people person! And what more could you ask of a waitress?"

"Hmm," Yang scratched her chin thoughtfully, then smiled widely. "You're right, I _am_ a people person. When do we start?"

"In an hour!" Sun declared joyfully. "Good thing you agreed, or else I'd have to double as waiter _and_ guard, and trust me, that never works out. Your clothes are on the back, and we can talk about payment later – now, I gotta make sure Sky the cook is not going to stick his head inside a stewpot again!"

He entered the kitchen in a hurry, spewing orders at the top of his lungs, and the staff inside stood in attention. Yang nodded, having to admit she was impressed by him. She turned towards Blake, who didn't seem to mirror her sentiments exactly.

"Cheer up, Blake. This is good for us!" she offered a hand for Blake to high-five. "For character-building!"

Blake glared at her.

"Yep, you are going to make an _excellent_ guard."

* * *

"The Earth Queen will receive you in a moment. Please wait patiently until she is ready."

Ruby nodded at the servant, then tried to get a look into the throne room as he retreated into it, but the doors closed before she could see much of anything. Frustrated, the Avatar walked back a little, drawing her cloak around her.

This day was not going like she had wanted. Sure, she hadn't expected to be greeted with a feast or a festival or anything like that, but everyone seemed to either want her gone as fast as possible or for her to never have shown up in the first place.

After the shuttle ride, which had taken them in a straight line above the city, making it virtually impossible for them to see any of it, they had arrived at the Earth Palace to a cold reception. There was only one servant waiting for them, and they disappeared quickly too, leaving them in an empty waiting room. Ruby couldn't even explore the rest of the palace, as the servant had made it very clear that the Queen would be very happy about that.

"This whole thing seems fishy," Weiss said in a quiet voice, looking around the room slyly. "Barely talking to us, leaving us by ourselves like this… I can't be the only one suspecting something bad, right?"

"Normally I'd say you're being paranoid, Weiss, but I'm with you on this," Jaune said, sticking close to Pyrrha nervously. "We don't know a thing about this place. They could be setting up an ambush or something! What if the Fire Nation has infiltrated Vale?"

"I assured you, the Fire Nation has _not_ infiltrated Vale," Cinder said. "Be patient. The Avatar has arrived at the Queen's doorstep with barely any notice - we shouldn't be surprised if she takes a little time to prepare."

"A little time? It has been well over an hour," Weiss mumbled. "Pyrrha, can you feel anything unusual?"

Pyrrha tapped her foot on the floor, then shrugged. "Just earth and stone. And people in the throne room. Nothing weird."

"Ruby, any input?" Weiss asked.

Ruby held back a sigh. Her sensible side was telling her to agree with Weiss. Maybe it was because they had been travelling for so long, but everything about this felt off. Yet another part of her – a part which, admittedly, did not belong _entirely_ to her – was telling her that everything was fine and would continue to be so. There was nothing and no one to fear inside this Palace.

"I don't know," Ruby said. "We can't be sure of anything. I agree with you that this is strange, but I also agree with Cinder. It's not like we're a regular party. And…" She scratched her head. "I trust the Earth Queen."

"You don't even know the Queen," Jaune pointed out. "How can you trust someone you don't know?"

"Avatar Ozpin knew the Queen very well," Ruby said. "I have a good feeling about her. That's all of it, really. Let's just agree to be cautious – if something goes wrong, we'll be ready, but otherwise…"

"Hmm." Weiss eased up a bit. "A sensible approach."

Ruby smiled at her, glad that they were on the same page.

"I do wish they'd given us something to eat," Jaune said, rubbing his stomach. "I'm starving."

"The Queen extends her apologies. But that won't be a problem much longer."

The doors of the throne room had opened, and a man stood in the way. He was the perfect picture of an earthbender – huge in every way, with muscles at show and a look to his eyes that told he would not be moved, no matter what was thrown at him.

He stared at Ruby for a moment, then his eyes went over her companions – Weiss, Jaune, Pyrrha – hardening at Cinder – before going back to her.

"You are welcomed into the Queen's presence," he said, stepping aside and gesturing with his arm. "Please, keep your weapons withdrawn, and refrain from bending inside the room."

"Yes, sir," Ruby said, walking past him.

"What a weird guy," Jaune whispered behind her.

"He heard that," Cinder stated. Jaune gulped loudly.

At the end of the room was the throne itself, and sat on it was the Earth Queen. Ruby wasn't struck by her appearance – it was like seeing an old friend, though her blonde hair was starting to lose some of its luster. Still, she seemed stronger than ever – strong as the stone that was always at her command.

"Avatar." The Queen rose. "It an honor to meet you again."

"The honor is all mine, Glynda." Ruby smiled, then blinked and shook her head. "I mean, hi. Uh. It's an honor to, uh, meet you, Queen of the… Earth Kingdom… ma'am…"

The Queen raised an eyebrow. "Yes. That's been made clear." She paused. "I apologize for the long wait. I had matters to see to with my council, but now, I am free to talk to you, Avatar… Ruby. That is your name, isn't it?"

"Yep, that's me." Ruby waved. "Here to serve."

"Ruby, daughter of Summer?"

Ruby did a double take. "You knew my mom?"

"In a way. She was an ambassador of the Southern Air Temple, and a most graceful guest. The kids of the court loved her visits." Glynda bowed her head momentarily. "I extend my sorrow for her passing, and your people's. The world is a lesser place without the Air Nomads."

Ruby looked away, biting her tongue to keep herself from tearing up. "T-thank you."

The Queen stepped down, nearing them. "And your companions! I've heard much about your merry group, and not all good things, but…" She turned towards Weiss. "Weiss Schnee, princess of the North Pole. It's an honor to have you in my palace."

"And it's an honor to meet the Earth Queen at last," Weiss answered courteously. "I hope great things will come of this meeting."

"Likewise." Glynda went over to Jaune. "You."

Jaune looked around. "Me?"

"Jaune, of the Southern Water Tribe. I know of you out of necessity." She shook her head. "Please refrain from making a mess of my palace."

"Y-yes, ma'am," Jaune said. "T-thanks for knowing about me!"

She stared at him incredulously, and he covered his mouth and walked to Ruby, who patted him in the back for comfort.

"And Pyrrha Nikos! The Invincible Girl. Now that is a name I've heard much about." Glynda stopped before Pyrrha. "Your tales almost outshine the Avatar's. Words cannot describe the pride I feel."

"I-I…" Pyrrha seemed unable to speak. She started to bow, but Glynda held her by the arm.

"Please. There's no need for that," the Queen said. "A person of your deeds needs not bow to me."

"T-thank you, my Queen," Pyrrha stuttered. "Your words… I cannot express how much they mean to me." She looked away, hesitant, "If I may ask…"

"You may, of course." Glynda gestured welcomingly. "Whatever you need."

"The people of my village… They evacuated shortly after I left them, but the Fire Nation was awfully close then. I haven't heard of them since," Pyrrha said. "I realize this might be a little below you, but I need to know if they are okay. My village's name is Mistral… Or it _was_..."

"Mistral. I haven't heard of any refugees from there, but they may have escaped my notice. With everything that has been happening, I haven't been able to pay as much attention to the refugees as I would like." Glynda nodded solemnly. "I will ask my officers and get back to you. And… this is not below me at all, Pyrrha. I live to serve my people."

Pyrrha smiled gratefully, then bowed her head. The Queen held her shoulder for a moment, then left her to stand before Cinder. Their eyes locked, and Ruby saw both stiffen, like they were prepared to fight at the slightest notice.

"And lastly, you. Cinder Fall," Glynda said slowly. "I have heard much about you, too, but for the opposite reasons as Pyrrha's case. I won't lie – I don't like that you're in my city. Not at all."

"I understand that," Cinder said. "But if you've heard about me, then you know the Avatar has vouched for me. You know I only mean to help you and your cause against my nation."

"I don't _know_ anything," Glynda noted. "The Avatar's word only goes so far. I tolerate your presence, and I will allow you to help – but I don't trust you. One step out of line…"

"Yes, that's been made clear to me…" Cinder looked towards Weiss. "Repeatedly."

The Queen fell silent, examining Cinder as she would an approaching snake. Ruby laughed nervously, walking over to Cinder and shaking her shoulder.

"Okay, then! We're all introduced, so…" she said. "Maybe we can get to the part where we plan how to kick the Fire Lord's butt?"

"Ruby! Goodness sake!" Weiss hissed at her. "Look who you're talking to!"

Ruby blinked a couple times, then muffled a yell as she realized what she had just done.

"All in due time." Glynda raised a hand. "For now… You must be exhausted from your travels, not to mention hungry. We will treat you to a feast, and then General Hazel will show you to your house in the Middle Ring. The official business can wait until tomorrow. Is that agreeable, Avatar?"

"Uh, sure, that's fine," Ruby said. "Just so you know, I'm a vegetarian. Weiss is too. And Jaune eats pretty much anything."

"As for me, I eat little children for breakfast," Cinder said dryly.

"Y-yeah? That Cinder, eh? Such a joker! We've been trying to get her to shut up all the way here!" Ruby elbowed Cinder lightly. "Oh, this is not going to be fun…"

* * *

Yang exited the restaurant, taking in a deep breath of the fresh air outside. It wasn't hot inside by any means, but she was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic with all the people inside. Sun hadn't been kidding about how much business he got – there must be at least twenty people eating there, and it wasn't even lunch time.

"Having fun?"

Yang looked to the side and found Blake leaning back against the front of the restaurant, under the shade of a nearby tree. She was a little hard to see, eyes aside. If Yang didn't know better, she would think they were glowing in the dark.

"Yeah, it's been fun. Exhausting, but fun," Yang said, walking to her. "I messed up a few orders, but Sun didn't get mad at me. He said it's normal for newbies like me. As long as I don't do that often, I'll keep getting paid."

"Reminds me that we still don't know much we're getting paid," Blake noted. "Not that I mind much. Little pay is better than none."

"That's the spirit!" Yang smiled. "I guess you've got a lot of experience with this kind of stuff, don't you, Blake?"

"In a way."

Yang turned around to look at the street. It was almost disturbing how different they were to those on the outer ring. They were so clean the sun reflected off them, and the water that ran alongside them in thin canals was perfectly pristine. Her father hadn't been exaggerating when he'd explained how the city worked – the middle ring folks really had it going good for them. And to imagine the inner ring was even better…

"This is… something else," Yang said. "Is it weird that I prefer the outer ring? Not as a place to live, just… This place feels _too_ clean, almost."

"I get what you mean. The place might look nice, but that's a trap," Blake shook her head. "I've been standing guard for a couple hours. How many dirty looks do you think I've gotten?"

"Seriously?" Yang frowned. "That sucks. I'm sorry, Blake."

"Don't worry about it. I'm used to much worse," Blake said. "I'll take dirty looks over people trying to lynch me, thank you."

"Man, that's so messed up…"

Yang looked at the streets angrily. She _hated_ this city. How could people stand to live someplace so awful?

Her father had mentioned something about Vacuo, the Fire Nation capital, being just as bad, but she didn't remember it so. Maybe she just hadn't been able to see it – that city had been there all her life, she was used to it, unlike Vale. It must be the same way with people of this middle ring.

"Yang, I mean it. You don't have to be upset for me," Blake said. "We're in a good place right now. Focus on that."

"Okay, okay. I'm not going to be grumpy," Yang sighed. "But don't expect me to be all happy like nothing's wrong."

"Sure. I would be worried if you never complained again," Blake's ears shifted a little. "Wait…"

"Hmm? Blake, what's…?"

Blake raised a hand, asking for silence, and Yang followed her gaze. There was no one on the street, but she could hear footsteps, and a conversation she couldn't yet understand. It didn't take long for a couple to appear, holding hands and speaking excitedly.

"But are you sure? You know how Amy likes to run her mouth. Remember last time, about the dog-skunk with wings?"

"It's different this time. She said she was on duty in the shuttle station, the Palace one, and _she_ stepped out, and she had a bunch of people with her. Sadly, Amy couldn't get a good look before they all went inside the Palace."

"You're serious. The Avatar, in our city. And she's meeting the Queen! That can only mean good things!"

"I think we're going to hear good news about the war soon, honey."

They passed the restaurant and walked around a corner, their voices fading in the distance.

Yang stared into nothing, a range of emotions striking her in quick succession. First, relief. This was the first she had heard of Ruby in a long time. She was safe and sound.

Then, happiness. If Ruby was in Vale, that meant they could finally meet again, and this time, as sisters. There was so much Yang wanted to say to her…

And to end it, dread, and shame.

"Did you catch that?" Blake asked, walking to her side. "Your sister's in town."

"Right…" Yang replied, feeling a little sick all of a sudden. "I have to go back inside. Break time's over, and I don't wanna get fired on my first day."

"Really? Yang, did you hear what I – Yang!"

Yang ignored her, going inside and closing the door between them. Suddenly, serving so many people did not feel so overwhelming.

* * *

The feast went splendidly. Ruby had never attended such a big one before – even those in the North Pole had paled in comparison. There were all kinds of foods, and many important people close to the throne. In the end, she ended up listening and talking a lot more than she ate.

Compared to the last few weeks, today had been wonderful, but even so, by the end of the feast, Ruby wasn't exactly… satisfied. She felt bad for being that way – the Queen was being so generous. But although had been sat beside Glynda, the Queen refused to talk with her about anything related to the war or the Fire Nation.

Maybe Ruby had been expecting to much… Tomorrow, things would be put into motion. She just needed to be patient, that was all.

After the feast, the Queen bade her farewell to them, and General Hazel led them out of the Palace and back to the shuttle station. This time, they stopped at what the general said was the middle ring – whatever that meant – and there, he took them to a house at the outskirts of a peaceful neighborhood.

It was a big, beautiful-looking house, with a pond at the back and a porch at the front where they could rest during the day. For once, Ruby didn't feel uncomfortable about sleeping inside. Sure, she liked her tree branches, but she wasn't about to dismiss the Queen's hospitality.

"There are many restaurants and shops nearby, for all your needs. Inside, you'll find a gift from the Queen – enough coin for you to live comfortably for a full month, and when that runs out, you need only ask more," General Hazel said, stopping before the front door. "Should you need anything, a servant will be here daily to communicate any messages from the Palace. They will see to your requests."

"That's very generous," Weiss said. "Would you extend our thanks to the Queen once again, please?"

"It's our pleasure and obligation to help the Avatar and her allies," Hazel said, bowing slightly. "Tomorrow, we will be having a meeting regarding the next stage of the war. Avatar Ruby, princess Weiss, you are welcomed to join," he paused. " _All_ of you we welcomed."

His gaze went to Cinder for a second, then he bowed once again and left.

"You know what, I take it back. He's not weird, he's just a boulder-like guy," Jaune said. "Classic earthbender, really."

"Yes, _classic_ earthbender," Pyrrha looked at him weirdly. "Shall we go inside? I swear, I am so tired, I am going to sleep like a rock."

"Because you're an earthbender!" Jaune exclaimed. "Sorry. Just, you know, it's fitting."

"You're hopeless," Weiss said, opening the door and going inside.

Jaune and Pyrrha followed, leaving Ruby and Cinder on the porch. Ruby stood around for a while, looking discreetly at her latest companion. Cinder didn't _look_ upset or anything like that, and that was what worried her.

"If you have something to ask, Ruby, go ahead," Cinder said, turning to look at her. "I am tired also, so if you could be quick about it…"

"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to keep you," Ruby dragged her foot along the floor awkwardly, wishing she hadn't been so obvious. "It's just, everyone was being very… cold to you, back at the Palace. And that's being generous. I think some of those officers didn't try to fight you only because the Queen was there."

"I like your usage of the word _try_." Cinder smirked. "You and I both know they wouldn't have had much luck."

"Well, yeah, but that's beside the point," Ruby said. "Aren't you upset? I would be, if I was being treated that way. I know you were Fire Nation and all that, but…"

"Ruby, I still _am_ Fire Nation. That hasn't changed," Cinder stated. "My home will be my home, always. No Fire Lord, no war, will ever change that." She scoffed. "Besides, even there, I received the same looks… the same treatment…"

Her voice trailed off, and then she raised her head, looking sharply at Ruby.

"No, I'm not upset," she said, laying a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "But thank you for caring. Your support is the only one I need."

"O-okay. If you say so." Ruby looked away, hoping she wasn't blushing, or that at least Cinder wouldn't take notice of it if she was. "You said you're tired, so you should go to sleep."

"Aren't you coming?" Cinder asked, going to the door.

"In a bit. I want to stay out here just a while, to think…" Ruby said. "Good night, Cinder."

"Alright. Good night, Ruby."

Cinder closed the door, and Ruby was all alone on the porch.

Well, almost alone. She leaned on the wooden rails of the porch and looked up at the moon, focusing on its whiteness contrasted against the black sky, clearing her mind of all stray thoughts…

"Today was weird, wasn't it?"

_It depends on what you are referring to. But yes, I would agree with the general feeling._

"You agree? And here I thought you were going to give me some guidance."

_You are you, Ruby. I am me. I won't always have all the answers you need. If it worked that way, no Avatar would ever make a mistake – I wouldn't be dead today._

"Okay, thanks for that. Why do you agree, then? I know you were happy, seeing Glynda. And, by the way, it's just _weird_ that I know her so well. I mean, _so well_. Can't I, like, block those memories?"

_Sorry, I wouldn't know how to do that. As to why I agree… I understand why Glynda has changed the way she has. My death, and the beginning of the war following it, has certainly changed the needs of her people, and therefore the way she must lead. It's made her stronger, wiser – not that she lacked in those departments before._

"But?"

_But she seemed… withdrawn. Like she had something else in her mind. Some other trouble that worried her even more than the Fire Nation. Something bigger, maybe – or something closer to home. Still, she is on your side, the side of good. You have nothing fear regarding her._

"I trust you, but you're one to talk, mister. Seriously, is there _no way_ for me to block those memories?"

_Sometimes, you have to accept some things will not go your way, and try to turn them into something good. Like lessons, for the far future. Or not so far future. You are growing, my dear Ruby, and it won't be long before-_

"Oookay, we're done for today. Thanks, Ozpin, talk to you later."

Ruby looked away from the moon and blinked. Immediately, she felt the stress of the day and the travel before weighing her down, and a yawn overpowered her.

Things were unsure today. But tomorrow…

Tomorrow was a new day.

* * *

Yang lied on her bed, staring at the ceiling unblinkingly. She was tired, but she couldn't sleep, and though she had a lot to think about, she couldn't focus on anything. There was a storm brewing inside her, but not like it had been in the past, when she'd been angry at her mother, or her father, or the world. She wasn't angry, she was…

She wasn't sure _what_ she was feeling, and that was the worst part of it.

A knock came to her door. Yang sighed, already knowing what was about to happen. Still, there was no point to delaying it. "Come in."

Her father opened the door, leaning sideways into it with his arms crossed. His gaze was of concern and confusion at the same time, as if he didn't know what to make of her.

"So… how was work?" he asked. "Big tips?"

"It was great. And, yeah, got some tips," Yang said. "Dad, can we not beat around the bush?"

"Okay. We shall beat the bush directly!" Taiyang smiled. "Big news today, huh?"

Yang rolled her eyes. "Blake told you?"

"I made her confess. Well, that's only half true," he shrugged. "It was obvious she was hiding something. I asked her, she refused to tell. A few minutes passed, yada-yada, she said she was worried about you, and the big news was revealed." he paused. "The Avatar is in Vale."

Yang didn't say a word. Opening her mouth would betray how she was feeling. Although, there really was no point to it. It was rather obvious one way or the other.

"You're not happy about it," he said, sitting beside her on the bed. "Why?"

"I _am_ happy, Dad," Yang said. "Ruby is safe. That's wonderful! That really is such a relief…" she rubbed her arms uneasily, looking away. "I don't know, it's weird. If you want to go see her, I'll come with you. I know you want to, and I won't take that away from you."

"Yang, you should know a father's first job is to make sure his children are okay. Ruby, as far as I'm aware, is doing great. As for you…" he put an arm around her. "If you're not prepared, we'll wait. We'll wait as long as you need. And if the opportunity passes… Well, I've waited fifteen years already. What's a few more months?"

Yang didn't know whether she wanted to punch him or hug him more. How could be so kind, when she was being so selfish?

"Okay… If you're sure…" Yang swallowed dry. "I'm sorry, Dad. I just can't do it. Not yet."

"Hey, it's fine. Don't feel bad about it," Taiyang said. "Is it because of your firebending?"

"…Yeah. That's it, I think," Yang nodded hesitantly. "I can't show up in front of Ruby like this. I need to be… you know, better."

"Well, you _can_ show up however, I'm sure she wouldn't judge you. But if that's what you need, then that's how it will be." He got up. "Train hard, don't stop trying, and one day soon, you'll burn brighter than ever."

"Hopefully not literally," Yang offered him a weak smile.

"Hopefully!" he laughed, stepping out of the room. "Good night, sweetheart."

"Good night."

He closed the door, and Yang fell back to her bed, somehow feeling even worse than before.

She hated lying to him like that.


	35. The Tales of Vale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is really freaking long. You might wanna set some time aside for it - or read it in parts. 
> 
> It's also very important to me.
> 
> I hope you like it!

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Fifteen: The Tales of Vale**

* * *

_The Tale of Weiss_

Bread was underrated, Weiss found. It wasn't the tastiest of foods, sure, but it wasn't bad either. It was an excellent source of energy before a long day of work, and it was so easy and quick to consume. Truly, bread was the unsung hero of the modern breakfast.

Unfortunately, bread could not make time go any faster. That, perhaps, was its one shortcoming. Oh, well. All things must have flaws – much like her.

"Heya!"

The door of the house flew open, and in came Ruby, wearing a particularly wide smile on her face – not a rare sight, but not an unwelcome one either. Weiss took another bite of her bread, quietly wondering how anyone could be so upbeat all the time. She certainly wasn't able of doing the same.

Maybe if she ate more bread, she could get there?

"Hey, Weiss! Just who I was looking for!" Ruby said, walking over to the dining table. "Now _that_ is an early breakfast if I've ever seen one! Haha!"

Weiss munched on her bread a little more. Was she supposed to be amused? She was, a little. Not that she'd let Ruby know.

"Anyway…" Ruby said. "I was wondering… If you could teach me the swamp-crocodile stance today!" She thrust out her arms and swung them up and down, clashing them against each other.

Was that supposed to mimic a crocodile's mouth? Ruby needed to work on her theatric skills. Though she supposed it had conveyed the meaning well enough. Weiss tore what remained of her bread in half.

"…So, yeah… Can we do that today?" Ruby asked. "Please?"

Weiss finished her bread.

"Sorry, not today," she said. "I have something I must do at the palace. A meeting to attend which, unlike your training, cannot be postponed."

"But… a meeting? Like, another one of those boring war talks?" Ruby frowned. "Why wasn't I invited?"

"I suppose they need only my contribution this time," Weiss said, and she couldn't help but smile vainly. "I _am_ the princess of the Water Tribe, after all. It's only expected that the Earth Queen would request my vision about the important matters that shall dictate the future of both our nations." She paused. "Do you want some bread? It's very good."

"Uh, no thanks. And _wow_." Ruby nodded in admiration. "I guess I kinda forgot that you're a princess… You are pretty important, Weiss!"

"Right?" Weiss' smile widened. "We'll train tomorrow, Ruby." She eyed the girl weirdly. "But I must tell you, there's no such thing as a swamp-crocodile stance. Wherever did you get that idea?"

"There isn't?" Ruby frowned. "I thought every animal from the ocean had a waterbending stance."

"Ruby, the swamp-crocodile…" Weiss sighed. "Never mind. I'll leave you to figure that out yourself. I'll be going now."

"Oh, okay," Ruby seemed a little disappointed, but she still smiled supportively at Weiss as she made for the front door. "Have fun at your super important meeting!"

"I don't know about fun, but I will aim to impress, as always." Weiss raised her chin smugly. "Heed my words: Jaws. Will. Drop."

* * *

Weiss was quite lost.

First off, when she arrived at the room she'd been invited to in the Earth Palace, she found it to be much… _humbler_ , than the ones that had held the meetings she'd attended with Ruby and Cinder. In fact, it was so small, there was almost no space for her to navigate around the strategy table to find her seat.

Secondly, there were a _lot_ less people than she'd expected, the group not passing a half-dozen. She only barely recognized them from previous meetings, and couldn't recall any names. Their uniforms did tell her they were all members of the Earth Army, but they were far from being Generals.

The Earth Queen, too, was nowhere to be seen.

What troubled her most, however, was that as soon as she was seated and her presence was recognized, the discussion started – and she wondered if she hadn't shown up to the wrong meeting, barely following talks of sea charts and Grimm horde patterns and cargo ratios and manpower management…

And then, after she didn't know how many hours of that, she had a stack of scrolls put in front of her, the ink on them looking at least a couple weeks old.

"Your signature, if you may, Princess."

It was a wonder that Weiss even found the presence of mind to speak. If her father was present, he would have promptly chastised her for sounding so obviously confused in front of these simple officers. "Is… is that all? There's… nothing else to be discussed?"

She eyed the officers hopefully. Surely, there had to be something she could contribute to the conversation. If not, why would she have been called here?

"No, I don't believe we missed anything," one of the officers said. "We only need a Water Tribe royal signature now. Frankly, the talks have been going on for so long, we're all just glad to finally be getting onto new ground!"

Weiss took the pen she was offered and, before signing, skimmed through the first document. The words made sense, she supposed, but their objective was lost on her. But she had to appear important, if only for her dignity's sake.

She didn't fail to notice the Earth Queen's signature was already there. So she had been involved in these talks, but Weiss could imagine she had been a lot more involved than her. And, above the Queen's signature… was her sister's name.

Of course. There had to be a representative from the North Pole for the Earth Kingdom to coordinate with. It only made sense that person would be Winter. She was, after all, a Commander of the Water Tribe Army, and she had spent a lot of time traveling the globe. Weiss could bet Winter had made many connections in the Earth Kingdom.

Weiss didn't have the strength to be bitter for more than a few seconds. Without so much as a sigh, she signed the first document, then went on to the second one, not even bothering to read it this time, and so on she went…

* * *

A half hour later, Weiss was back at the house, but she found herself unable to open the door and go inside. She could hear people talking and laughing inside, but she'd never felt so ashamed in her life before. She certainly wasn't about to go in and ruin their fun.

So she sat down on the porch, wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin on top of her knees. If she waited long enough, night would fall, everyone would go to sleep, and then she would be able to go inside and pretend nothing was wrong. She could tell them she'd been busy all day… at her super important meeting… which she had been very needed at…

She was so absorbed in her self-pity, Weiss didn't notice the door had opened until a particularly loud laugh reached her ears, and suddenly she noticed Ruby was sitting beside her, looking at her like she was a lost cub.

"Weiss? What's that sad face for?"

"What sad face? I don't know what you're talking about." Weiss looked away. "I'm _fine_."

Ruby pouted. "You can't lie to me, Weiss. I know all your faces, and right now you're wearing your sad face. What happened? Did you miss your meeting? Did a Grimm invade the palace?" her eyes widened. "Did you show up at the meeting without your pants and didn't realize until it was too late?!"

"No! None of that!" Weiss said. "Ruby, I don't even wear pants."

"Oh, yeah. How could I forget that?" Ruby laughed nervously. Suddenly, her eyes narrowed at Weiss, and the princess shrank away a little. "So you admit you're sad! I knew it. Explain yourself, or consider our friendship terminated!"

Weiss shook her head reprehensively. Sometimes she worried about the influence she had on the Avatar. She remembered Ruby had been a much gentler girl when they'd first met. Her growing up was mostly a good thing, of course, but Weiss did resent it during moments like this.

"I'm not sad, I just…" Weiss looked away. "I've been stupid."

"Whaaat?" Ruby snorted, as if she'd heard the most outrageous statement in history. "The only stupid thing here is you saying that." She shrugged. "But okay. I will humor you and hear what you have to say – even if you are wrong."

"I didn't ask you to do that,"

Ruby looked at her crossly. "Excuse me, do you _want_ our friendship terminated?"

Weiss sighed. She was such a bad influence on Ruby. "It's just that… You know I have a hard time talking about this kind of stuff, Ruby." She paused. "I… I thought I had gotten better, you know? I used to hide who I really was. How I truly felt and the things I cared about… stuff like that. But then I met you and went on this crazy journey and we got to the North Pole, and I thought… That's not me anymore. I'm Weiss – and I'm totally okay with that."

"I… really am not following you, Weiss." Ruby tilted her head, puzzled.

"What I mean is, I convinced myself I am this super important person, because my father gave me this ambassador job, but it doesn't mean anything. It's just a stupid title, anybody from the Water Tribe could do it! It's… just like being a princess, I guess," Weiss said. "I don't have any real war experience. I don't know how to forge alliances or manage troops or negotiate treaties… I'm only good for signing things. That's all I'm here for."

Weiss bit her lip. It wasn't like those thoughts hadn't been in her mind all day, but putting them into words really, _really_ hurt. She had half the mind to forget all about the shame she was feeling, go inside, and just crawl into her bed and only get up the next week.

"I take it back. You're acting _really_ stupid right now."

Weiss whipped around to face Ruby again. "What did you just say?!"

"You heard it," Ruby said, crossing her arms. "You think you're not important? You're wrong. So what if you don't know all that war stuff? That stuff is boring anyway. _That_ is what anyone can do." She humphed. "Who's my waterbending teacher? Who's the person that's always stopping Jaune from poisoning himself with wild berries? Who makes sure we don't eat too much on the road so we don't starve to death later?"

"Ruby…" Weiss frowned. "That's all fine, but-"

"No buts! Frankly, it's kinda upsetting that you think you're that replaceable. Like I'd not care if it was anyone else here instead of you," Ruby got up. "You're important to me. To all of us. So you really shouldn't be out here feeling this way. Come have fun inside already."

Like often happened when she was with Ruby, Weiss was rendered speechless. There was a hundred ways she could think of to reprimand Ruby for being so insensitive regarding her feelings, but Weiss was too touched to do that.

To think, such a stupid girl could make her feel this way…

"Fine," Weiss said, getting up. "You're terrible, Ruby. You know that, don't you?"

"Sorry, was I too harsh?" Ruby bowed her head a little, twiddling her thumbs. "I was trying to act like you do when I'm being emotional, but I don't think I'm half as good as you at that…"

"I'll take that as a compliment." Weiss smiled. "And you were perfect."

"Yay!" Ruby clapped her hands. "Maybe as a thank you, you could teach me the swamp-crocodile stance?"

"Ruby, I already told you…" Weiss stopped herself. "You know what? Okay. We'll invent a stance just for you." She shook her head. "The things you put me through, Avatar…"

Ruby smiled at her, then turned and walked inside. Weiss waited, listening to the cheerful voices coming from the house, and for a moment she was floored that, between all the places on Remnant, she had ended up here. She didn't really believe in blessings, but maybe…

With a smile on her lips, Weiss followed Ruby inside.

* * *

_The Tale of Yang_

"This is stupid."

Yang hit the wooden dummy on the chest, causing it to rock back and forth precariously on its base. Her knuckles stung from the impact, but she brushed that off easily.

"Really? This is stupid?" Her father huffed behind her. "I'll have you know I spent precious time, money and sweat preparing this training regimen just for you! I carved these dummies myself, using only my wit and a knife I – ahem – _borrowed_ from the neighbor." He huffed again, even louder. "I am quite hurt that my own daughter cares so little about all the trouble I go through for her good. A thankless job, I declare!"

"Oh, quit your drama, old man," Yang turned around so he could see it when she rolled her eyes. "I'm not falling for your theatrics. I know you paid a guy to make this stuff. You couldn't carve a straight square if you tried to!"

"The brass on this girl!" Taiyang gasped. "…Still, the price was not kind to my pocket, Yang. Is it not working, really? Not at all?"

Yang sighed. "Yeah, it's not. I've been going all out on these things for half an hour at least, and nothing's happened. I can't do to these dummies what I did to jerk-face Cardin Winchester." She spun around to glare at her lifeless targets. "It's not the training that's stupid. It's good for me to keep in shape – thanks for that. It's just… this whole _situation_ is stupid."

Yang crossed her arms. She had told herself not to get frustrated if nothing came out of this exercise, but it was hard to keep her word when it actually happened. It had been weeks since she'd lost her ability to firebend, but still she had made no meaningful advance towards getting it back. And no matter how much she told herself to be patient, it was hard to do so in the face of constant failure.

"To be honest, I hardly expected your firebending to return this easily," her father said, coming to her side and resting a hand on her shoulder. "Like I told you, a person's bending comes from a place within themselves, their spirit – not their physical body. Those two are not completely unrelated, of course, but unless your psyche is defined by how many push-ups you can do, your body's change will have little to no impact on your spirit."

"Dad, you know I can't follow you when you start rambling about spirits and all that nonsense," Yang replied grumpily. "The only thing I got now was that it's my fault for not being strong enough in spirit to get my bending back - or something like that. _Thanks_ , Dad."

"Again, you're confusing _spiritual_ strength with _physical_ strength," he said sagely, and Yang had a sudden mental image of her father dressed like a monk, hiding his hands-on long sleeves opposite of each other and the top of his head hidden by an absurdly big hat. "Your spirit doesn't get stronger, nor does it get weaker. It… changes, like the tides. Sometimes your spirit will shine like the sun… a moment later, it will be as black as that _horrible_ coffee they sell on the corner at five o'clock on week days. Dragons almighty, how can someone drink such-"

"Dad, stick to the point," Yang interrupted. "Actually, don't. You weren't making sense anyway." She raised her hands. "I'll just keep training. Something's gotta happen eventually."

"Ah, yes, the wisest of plans… throwing yourself against a wall until _you_ are the wall!" Taiyang threw a punch at the air and shouted incoherently. "…Wait, what the heck am I saying? Why do you even listen to me, Yang?"

Yang looked at him and shrugged. She asked herself that question far too often for her own comfort.

"Alright, I'll just leave you to do your thing. I'm not an overbearing dad, after all." He flashed her a smile. Yang chose not to dispute the statement. "I'll be cooking something fancy tonight. Something involving fish, because I got the _sweetest_ deal on some tuna from a guy on the corner – same corner with the coffee, but thankfully they weren't selling right then." He sighed in relief. "We should all eat together. You, me and Blake."

"Sure," Yang looked at him weirdly. "That's… the same thing we do every night."

"…Right. See you later ant-alligator!"

In the blink of an eye, Taiyang was out of the room. Yang winced, hearing him stomping down the stairs towards the kitchen. Her father could be really weird sometimes.

Taking a deep breath, Yang turned back to face her current dummy. Although she wasn't upset at her father – he was probably right about everything he had said – listening to him hadn't encouraged her at all. If anything, it had done the opposite.

Strength of spirit… A place within… She didn't have any of that.

A sudden anger rose to the surface, and she brought her leg up in a wide arc, connecting a kick at where the dummy's ear would be, if it had one. Her leg rumbled at the impact, and she flinched as the dummy's head flew from its neck and hit the wall next to the door, shattering noisily.

"What was that?!" her father shouted from downstairs. "Yang, are you okay?!"

"Y-yeah!" Yang gulped. "Don't worry about it, it was nothing!"

She really hoped the carpenter hadn't charged him too much.

* * *

After another hour of fruitless training, Yang decided to call it quits for the day. Overtaxing her body wouldn't bring her bending back, it would only hurt her. So she took a bath and after that, a nap, and when she woke up again, it was nighttime, and a new, sweet scent reached her room from downstairs.

"Hmm." She sat up in her bed, the enticing scent getting her awake quickly. "Dad does not disappoint."

A change to a fresh set of clothes and a quick combing of her hair later, she was hopping down the stairs two steps at a time. Yang stopped at the kitchen's doorway and looked in, but there was nobody nor anything there.

She sniffed the air and found that the scent was coming from the living room behind her instead, and when she turned around, she found Blake setting a glass pot down on the dinner table, which itself was… unusually decorated for a family dinner. Candles and shining silverware… Something wasn't right.

"Hey." Yang stepped into the living room, looking around curiously. "What's going on, Blake?"

Blake looked up at her, seemingly only noticing her presence now. Her cat ears twitched as her eyes darted from right to left, scouring the living room and the windows, before she stood straight and gave Yang a little smile.

"Hi. What do you mean, what's going on?"

"What's with the fancy table?" Yang asked. She approached the table and looked down at the pot. She couldn't quite describe what she was looking at – a mix of spongy yellow and a little faint blue here and there, some spices sprinkled on top… "And what's _this_?"

"That's, ah… That's our dinner," Blake said slowly. "It's a local recipe from the… west coast islands. It's very good, I promise. Well, it's _supposed_ to be good – I've never made it myself, but I was taught how to by…" She paused. "Your dad helped too."

"Well, I see no reason not to trust you," Yang said. She was a little skeptical still, but if Blake had cooked the meal herself, she owed it to her to at least try it. "Where is Dad anyway? I thought this was supposed to be a family dinner – well, not _family_ exactly, but you get what I mean…"

Yang bit her tongue, wishing she could take that last part back. What an insensible thing to say, after all the time she had spent with Blake. But if Blake was offended, she didn't show it. She didn't even seem to be paying much attention to Yang – in fact, her eyes were everywhere _but_ Yang.

"Your father had an emergency," Blake said.

"An emergency? At this hour?" Yang frowned. "That doesn't sound good."

"It's a very dire situation. That's all he would say," Blake stated firmly. "But he insisted we eat without him. Just the two of us." She sat down on her chair and grabbed her silverware. "It's all very unfortunate."

Yang stood still for a moment, not knowing exactly how to proceed. It was now very clear to her what was going on, even if it was a little difficult to believe. Not the part about her dad's involvement – she should have figured he was plotting something when he told her about dinner earlier. But that Blake had connived with him to get to this point…

Maybe she was looking too much into it. It was just dinner with a friend. Her best friend. And her father only wanted her to spend some quality time with Blake – her _friend_ \- without him around for once. Yeah, that was it.

"Alrighty. It's his loss," Yang said. "I bet he's devastated he can't enjoy your awesome cooking."

"I… would hold any praise until you've taken a bite," Blake replied, looking at the pot self-consciously.

"Oh, I'm sure it's more than fine. Can't be worse than Dad's cooking."

Yang bent down over the table and took a sniff of the food. The smell did not match its looks at all. In fact, now that she was so close, she could tell that it was not coming from the food at all. It was like… some kind of flower. Roses? Lilies? Or…

She looked at Blake, and the faunus matched her stare, completely silent.

This wasn't dinner with a friend.

* * *

Blake's food was good. It wasn't the best thing Yang had ever tasted, but it was a welcome change after the meager dinners they'd been having lately. And considering that it was the first time Blake made the food, things could only get better in the future. A few more dinners like this, and she would have the recipe mastered.

Yes, Yang would like more of these dinners.

"I'm really glad you liked it," Blake said, putting the empty pot on the kitchen sink. "I'll be honest, I was really worried you weren't going to like it. I've only ever cooked simple meals, never something as fancy as this."

"That's a sad thing to hear." Yang grinned. "So much squandered potential… But now that I know you have the touch, we're gonna have to make this a frequent occurrence."

"I don't know about that. It was my first time." Blake shrugged. "Beginner's luck, probably."

"Nope. You're not getting away that easy. You're gonna cook for us again, no arguing." Yang crossed her arms. "And if I ever hear you talking yourself down like that again, I'll…"

Yang paused. She meant to end that with a threat, but nothing appropriate was coming to mind. That, and she wasn't exactly in the mindset to be so brutish with Blake. Most of the time, Yang had no problem saying whatever was on her mind.

This was not one of those times.

"Yes?" Blake turned around to face her, and Yang was suddenly aware how close they were. Just a step or two forward, and… "What _would_ you to do to me, Yang?"

Yang pursed her lips, somehow unable to look away from Blake's eyes. It seemed like half her brainpower had fizzled away all of a sudden, and the remaining half wasn't working very well anymore either.

_Go on, now's your chance!_

_This is a little too fast…_

_Who cares, go for it._

_She'll take the lead._

_No,_ Blake _is not going to take the lead._

_This is all a big misunderstanding._

_Just do it already!_

"U-uh, I w-would…" Yang stuttered. Her mouth felt way too dry. "…give you a pep talk. T-to cheer you up." She gulped. "G-good night."

Blake tilted her head a little. "…Good night?"

"I'm, uh, exhausted. From working out. And having fun. With you," Yang said. "Bye."

Blake smirked. "See you tomorrow."

Yang backed away towards the doorway. Halfway there, she realized what she was doing and spun around, then walked away with measured steps. As soon as she was out of Blake's sight, she jumped onto the stairs and raced up the steps and into her room, closing the door behind her and pressing her back to it.

That freaking smirk! She hated it so much. Why did Blake have to be so clever? She was probably laughing right now, thinking that she had played Yang so well. Well, she was wrong! Blake had not succeeded. Yang had not fallen for her wicked wiles, and she never would!

Never never never never.

_Never_.

…Why did she feel so warm?

* * *

_The Tale of Pyrrha and Cinder_

Pyrrha stood on the porch of the house, stretching her arms above her head leisurely. This was an excellent morning. The sun was shining, the air was especially fresh, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was in days like these she resented how connected to the earth she was. Sometimes she wished she could soar away from the ground, like Ruby did, and reach for the stars.

"Having a nice time?"

Cinder appeared beside her, leaning easily on the porch. Pyrrha finished stretching and looked at her companion. She still didn't quite know how to feel about Cinder. Firebenders weren't exactly her favorite kind of people, especially those that used their abilities for evil. But that wasn't who Cinder was today… As far as it appeared.

"Of course," Pyrrha said. "How could I not enjoy this? Today… It feels incredible."

"I suppose it does, now that you mention it." Cinder hummed. "It's easy to take mornings like this for granted. Especially when your life is so chaotic." She paused. "Are you doing anything today, Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha tried to keep her reaction to a minimum, but she was so surprised, it was hard to keep a straight face. "No, I don't have anything planned. Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to spend time together, just the two of us," Cinder said. "We haven't gotten to know each other much, have we? I would like to remedy that."

"I… I guess that would be nice," Pyrrha said. She wondered if she would have replied differently had she more time to think of an answer. Probably not – Cinder's suggestion was unusual, but Pyrrha couldn't see anything necessarily wrong with it. "Did you have something in mind?"

"Well, I've seen you fight a little, and I've been hearing a lot about the Invincible Girl from Mistral, but that's as far as I've gotten to know your strength." Cinder smirked. "A friendly spar. What do you say?"

_That_ was Cinder's idea of spending time with a friend? She shouldn't be so surprised, Pyrrha supposed. From what she gathered, Cinder hadn't had many friends in the past – if any at all. She probably didn't know any better.

Pyrrha had to admit, strange as it was, the idea intrigued her. She couldn't deny that she had been wondering how capable Cinder was too. And the best training was facing new opponents. The more unique they were, the better.

"That sounds great," Pyrrha said. "But there's not much space around here, and I don't think the Queen would like you showing off your firebending so openly. We should find someplace better."

"I was just about to suggest that. Good to know you're so forward-thinking, Pyrrha Nikos," Cinder nodded. "Somewhere near the northern wall, perhaps?"

"That should do." Pyrrha looked around. "Hey, Jaune!"

The boy was practicing with his sword on the courtyard, not too distant from them, his shirt thrown on the ground beside him. Him being there might or might not have been why Pyrrha had come to the porch in the first place.

" _Hello, Pyrrha_." He turned around, flashing a charming smile, and leaned on his sword. As soon as he saw Cinder was beside her, however, he lost his balance and fell on his side. "A-and Cinder! Hello to you too!"

"Hello," Cinder said amusedly. "Nice morning down there too?"

"Yes, very!" Jaune exclaimed. "D-did you want something, Pyrrha?"

"Cinder and I are going to spar. Would you like to come along and watch?" Pyrrha asked.

"Uh, you know what, that sounds _awesome_ , truly it does, but I'm… preoccupied." Jaune rolled on the ground, turning his back to them and curling up. "Have fun, girls!"

Pyrrha nodded, a little disappointed, then came down the porch and started heading off the house's limits. She looked back to see if Cinder was following her, and saw she was now crouching beside Jaune, tapping his bare arm gently.

"Thank you, my shining knight," Cinder said solemnly. "You have a productive day too."

"T-thanks…"

Cinder got up and joined Pyrrha again. Pyrrha put her hands on her hips and set a stern look on her. She herself wasn't sure what message she was trying to convey, but it certainly wasn't anything nice.

"What?" Cinder said, the tips of her lips curving upwards ever so slightly. "I was only joking."

"Jaune is not just a target for mockery," Pyrrha stated. "It's okay to joke around, but…"

"But? Why, Pyrrha, you seem to be taking the joke a little personally." Cinder winked. "Although… One might think your issue is not with the joke, but something else entirely. But maybe I'm just jumping to conclusions. Let's find our battleground, Invincible Girl."

Pyrrha pursed her lips. She was beginning to feel much more comfortable with the idea of hitting Cinder repeatedly and without mercy.

In a friendly manner.

* * *

"This seems like a good enough spot."

Pyrrha looked around. To the north was a section of the wall that separated the Middle and Lower Rings, and to the south was the conjunction of houses they had come from. Between them was a nearly empty space, with rocky soil that was only seldom interrupted by a small patch of grass or pond. A place designed to buffer an invading army's advance, in case the Lower Ring was invaded and the wall was broken through.

"Agreed," Pyrrha said, turning to Cinder. "Shall we set up some rules?"

"I demand you not hold back. Any ability you have in your repertoire, you are free to use," Cinder said. "However, I will refrain from utilizing a few advanced techniques."

"Really? That's a little arrogant, don't you think?" Pyrrha asked.

Cinder raised an eyebrow. "Would you prefer I throw lightning at you, then?"

Pyrrha looked at Cinder, sure that she was joking. But Cinder looked completely serious – which wasn't exactly out of the norm, even when she was being humorous, but Pyrrha could tell she meant what she said.

"Okay, I see your point. We should have a safe word, in case one of us gets hurt, or you want to give up." Pyrrha smirked. "And I do mean _you_."

"Oh, getting feisty now, are you?" Cinder said. "Alright, if one of us should wish to forfeit the match, we need only yell… _knight_."

"Haha. I see what you did there." Pyrrha rolled her eyes. "Anything else?"

"Nothing on my part. Shall we get started?"

They stared at each other, Cinder with the utmost confidence written in her eyes, and Pyrrha with the certainty that she was going to beat that arrogance out of her soon enough.

What could she say? She was competitive by nature.

* * *

Pyrrha was the one to take the initiative, launching a chunk of the ground towards Cinder with a kick. The firebender tore the rock apart with a stream of flames, then waited patiently as the dust settled. When the air was cleared, Cinder saw Pyrrha coming from up high, a fist poised to strike her over the head.

Hitting the ground with the back of her foot, Cinder released a burst of fire to propel herself forward and under her opponent, then turned around just as Pyrrha landed. Cinder continue to further the distance between them, throwing two fireballs that forced Pyrrha to take out her shield and block.

The girl was smart. She must have figured the best advantage she had was to close the distance between them and force Cinder to fight her up-close, where she had her shield and Cinder had only her fists. A good plan, if a little presumptuous.

Cinder reversed direction, now heading straight towards Pyrrha. Remarkably, the earthbender was not caught by surprise, instead immediately raising her shield to prepare herself from an attack. Cinder redirected her flames once again, using them to shoot upwards just as they were about to collide. She spun in the air and thrust out her hand in a chopping motion towards the exposed back of Pyrrha's neck.

Her hand met metal, and she landed on her knees clumsily. Gritting her teeth, she looked up – Pyrrha was turning around, her leg making a wide arc already. Cinder dropped completely, dodging the rocky projectile thrown at her, then somersaulted to her feet and countered with a stream of fire.

She heard the metallic noise too late – Pyrrha's shield came cutting through the flames and struck her on the shoulder, sending her reeling back. The ground rumbled beneath Cinder's feet, and she felt a fist connect to the small of her back. She fell on her knees, fury suddenly exploding from within…

Barely thinking, she joined the index and middle fingers of her right hand, rose to her feet, and brought them just beneath Pyrrha's jaw. The redhead girl dropped her shield and raised her hands, eyes wide with fear.

A small spark flew from Cinder's fingertips. " _Knight_."

She lowered her hand and took a step back. That had been stupid. But she hadn't expected Pyrrha to put up such a fight.

* * *

"Sorry," Cinder said. "I got a little lost there. You had me in a corner, I was growing desperate…" She bowed her head. "You won fair and square."

"Not really," Pyrrha said, her heart still beating like crazy. "You would have killed me if this were a real battle."

"In that case, you also had plenty of chances to bash my head in with your shield." Cinder noted. "Don't cut yourself short, Pyrrha. I already made that mistake for you."

Pyrrha frowned. She knew for sure she wouldn't have done anything all that different in a real battle – certainly nothing as brutal as what Cinder was suggesting. But she supposed Cinder had a different perspective of such situations. Maybe she wasn't so wrong.

"Tell me, Pyrrha," Cinder said, sitting down on the ground. "How did you become a metalbender? I've never met one before. Is it a family trait, or…?"

"No, I wasn't born able to metalbend. But, then again, I wasn't born being able to earthbend either," Pyrrha said, sitting beside her. "The two are not separate, you see. Metalbending is just… trickier. An advanced form. Like your lightning, I guess."

"Ah. That makes sense." Cinder nodded. "But lightning is not as uncommon. Many firebending masters can do it. As far as I'm aware, you're the only metalbender _in history_."

"Well… yeah. I guess I am." Pyrrha looked away. "You're not trying to flatter me just because you almost melted my face off, are you?"

"Not at all." Cinder elbowed her lightly. "I have no problem flattering those who deserve it. It's that simple."

Pyrrha hummed under her breath. Their spar had done nothing to help clear up how she felt about Cinder. If anything, the firebender was more of a mystery now than ever before.

"You know, considering the company he keeps, trying to impress him is probably not going to get you any positive results," Cinder said, now lying on her back. "I suggest a more direct approach. And if you're not ready for that… Well, you never know when time will run out." She shrugged. "Just some advice, woman to woman."

Pyrrha stared at her in confusion for a moment, until it dawned on her what Cinder was talking about. "I… have no idea what you're talking about," she said, turning her face away to hide her blushing cheeks.

"Sure you don't, Invincible Girl."

Cinder Fall was a mystery, and again, Pyrrha couldn't tell whether she was being serious or not…

But maybe she made a good point.

"Thank you, Cinder. You're… a lot friendlier than you appear at first," Pyrrha said hesitantly.

"I will take that as a compliment." Cinder smirked. She stood up and offered Pyrrha a hand. "Now… Would you care for a rematch?"

* * *

_The Tale of Ruby_

Ruby was tired. She had thought attending war strategy meetings would be easy as eating cake, especially after all the Grimm and people she'd been fighting since she'd woken up in the cold waters of the South Pole… But that was before she'd actually gotten to it.

Meetings were _boring_. It was just a bunch of people – high-ranking officials of the army and members of the Vale court, and sometimes the Queen herself – talking and talking and talking about all manners of things, and Ruby only understood a tenth of all that, but that didn't mean she had anything meaningful to contribute even in these occasions.

More than boring, however, the meetings were frustrating. Ruby thought herself a very patient person, but she was beginning to change her mind, as despite her having attended weeks' worth of war meetings, nothing seemed to have changed. There was no concrete plan on how to continue the fight against the Fire Nation, much less retaking Atlas. Maybe it was because she would rather discuss hugs and friendship instead of war, but it felt like nothing had moved forward at all since she'd come to Vale.

Weiss shared the same frustration, but hers seemed to come from an understanding of how slow matters like these could be, rather than plain impatience like Ruby's. On the other hand, Cinder seemed entirely unaffected. Seeing as she was the only one in the group with actual war experience, Ruby decided to follow her example and not make a fuss – for now.

Still, she was tired. Today she hadn't had any company in the palace. Weiss had stayed at the house to see about some messages to send to the Water Tribe, and Cinder had been to meetings separate from Ruby's. The only thing worse than listening to noblemen discussing the logistics of transporting cabbage to feed the army's advance, was doing so without friends.

But now she was free. As she walked away from the shuttle station and headed down the Middle Ring, Ruby could barely contain a sigh of contentment, remembering how soft and peaceful and easy to sleep on her favorite tree branch behind the house was. She couldn't wait to lie down and-

"Avatar! Avatar! Please, will you help us?"

Ruby stopped in her tracks and bowed her head in disappointment, but only for a moment. She forced herself to smile and turned around, and saw a middle-aged woman walking fast towards her, her hands clasped together in front of her chest. The woman stopped before her, breathing with difficulty, but she seemed very relieved.

"You're… you're the Avatar, aren't you?" the woman asked. "Yes… You look just like people say! Red hair, silver eyes… Unless I'm mistaken?"

"Nope, that's me. Avatar Ruby, at your service!" Ruby said. "You need help?"

"Yes. I'm… I'm so sorry to bother you, it's just… I don't know where else to go at this point." The woman shook her head. "You see, there's a monster going around. A Grimm…"

"A Grimm?" Ruby repeated. It was no surprise, really. Though she would have liked if people asked her to rescue their cat-beaver from the top of a tree from time to time. "That's my specialty. But isn't it the city guard's job to take care of Grimm around here?"

"It is, and we've asked for their help, but they couldn't kill the Grimm. It was too strong – I think some soldiers got hurt badly…" the woman said. "They gave up hunting it down. Said that the Grimm wasn't going out of its way to get people anyway, so it wasn't that big of a deal, but they're wrong. Just earlier today, it almost got my boy…"

The woman shuddered, and Ruby noticed there was a little boy peeking from behind her, grabbing at his mother's skirt. He noticed Ruby looking at him and jumped, his eyes going wide.

"I see." Ruby nodded. "Where's this Grimm, ma'am?"

The woman frowned. "Huh? Don't you wanna find out more before you go after it?"

"Not really. Whatever this Grimm is, I'm pretty sure I can handle it, and the more time that passes, the more likely it is that someone gets hurt," Ruby said. "It's my job to make sure that doesn't happen. So if you know where the Grimm is, I'd really like to know."

"Well, it moves around, like they all do, I guess," the mother said. "But there might be a place where you can track it down. I don't think you're gonna like it, though…"

* * *

"Freaking sewers, really?"

Ruby spat at the dirty water and rubbed her arms and legs. She had just dropped through a manhole, and just the smell was almost enough to make her spew out her lunch. How many people lived in the Middle Ring? Hundreds, thousands? And all their waste ended up down here. The Air Temples' system had been much nicer than this… As far as she had been taught, that is.

"Okay. Just ignore it, Ruby, power through," she whispered to herself. "Find the Grimm, kill it, save good people. A little stink isn't gonna stop you."

She started walking, and soon the smell became the least of her problems. The lack of light was a more immediate concern. Ruby extended her hand in front of her and snapped her fingers, trying to conjure a small flame, like she had done back at Beacon Tower, but nothing happened.

She didn't let that failure deter her. There were more ways to see than with her eyes. She could feel the air currents running through the sewer tunnels in front of and behind her, and with a tap of her foot, she was able to roughly make out her surroundings through earthbending.

But the tunnels weren't the only thing she felt. A deep rumble shook her, so powerful that even without earthbending she would have noticed it. Something was moving nearby. Something big and heavy… something evil…

She didn't need any bending to find her way to her target, as a light feeling at the back of her head guided her through the darkness, growing surer and surer with each step. Soon, she came to a halt, and waited.

Three pairs of red eyes shone in the darkness ahead of her, and a croak echoed throughout the sewers. Ruby took out her staff and released its blade. Time to fight.

Something cut through the air, heading straight at her at breakneck speed. Ruby jumped over whatever it was, letting the wind carry her high up, and spun around to connect her feet to the ceiling. The impact let her get a new sense of her surroundings, and after's a few seconds' thinking, she was pretty sure what her target was.

A giant, disgusting toad.

Ruby kicked against the ceiling, boosting herself towards the Grimm. She swung her staff, releasing a rush of wind towards the beast to disorient it before she struck – but she only slashed through thin air and landed back on the concrete floor beside the waste. The Grimm had moved, faster than she had expected considering its size.

Its movement was no mystery, as its steps made the tunnels shake all around Ruby, forcing her to bend down so as not to stumble and fall. She looked through the darkness, to the walls and the ceiling, trying to catch a glimpse of the toad's eyes – there!

She started to raise her staff, but suddenly something slimy wrapped her left arm. Ruby didn't have time to be disgusted. The next second, she was off the ground, being pulled violently through the air towards the Grimm. Thinking fast, Ruby thrust out her feet to produce an air current, changing her trajectory. She slammed against a wall, and the thing around her arm let go. Though she tried, she couldn't stop herself from falling into the dirty water.

Ruby couldn't remember a feeling more unpleasant than this. Sure, there was pain, but this was something else entirely. If she could, she would have jumped out of her body right then and there and never returned – or at least until someone gave her body a very thorough bath.

Even as her stomach turned and turned, a feeling bigger than disgust rose inside her, something she was deeply familiar with, but that she never had been able to describe. There was one image she could associate with it – Grimm – and that was all she needed.

Moved by instinct, Ruby raised her free hand above her head and closed it around the Grimm's slimy tongue – she was suddenly aware that was what had grabbed her before. Not wasting a second, she brought her staff up, slicing the tongue. The Grimm made a horrible noise and dropped onto the water, producing a great splash.

Everything went grey.

And then she was standing on the toad's head, her blade pressed against the space between its many eyes. A thoughtless swing of her staff – and the Grimm turned to smoke under her.

Ruby dropped back into the water, once again aware of herself and in how disgusting of a situation she was. Her stomach caught up to her, and she had to draw on all her strength and happy thoughts to keep herself from throwing up.

She didn't care how big or strong any Grimm she faced in the future might be, this one was, without a doubt, the worst one ever.

* * *

After finding her way back to the surface through another manhole, Ruby tried her best to bend all the waste and disgusting residue off her, but after half an hour, she still couldn't bear to smell herself. Her fate was sealed - she was going to be like this for weeks, it seemed.

However, she couldn't call it a day yet. She still needed to tell the mother who had come to her that the matter was settled. Hoping her disgusting state of being would be forgiven, Ruby followed the directions she was given to a small house on the outskirts of the Middle Ring.

She knocked on the door, and while she waited, looked up at the night sky, eager to go back home and rest at last. She was so tired now, but also happy. She had helped someone today, and there was no better feeling in the world than that.

The door opened, and the mother looked at her, astounded. "Avatar! Is… is it you?"

"Do I look that bad?" Ruby giggled. "Yeah. You were right, the sewers suck. But I got rid of the Grimm."

"You did?" the woman gasped. "But so quickly? You did say you weren't going to wait, but still… You aren't hurt, are you?"

"No, I'm just disgusting," Ruby said. "Sorry, I'm probably infecting your house with this smell."

"Oh, Avatar, never mind that! I am so, so grateful! My boy can play in the streets again without me having to worry!" The mother wiped her eyes with a hand. "To be honest, when I heard the Avatar was just a fifteen-year-old girl, I thought… Well, no wonder the world is in the state it is today! But now I can see that's not the case at all. You give me hope, Avatar. Thank you so much!"

Ruby smiled at the woman and bowed her head a little. She never knew what to say or do in these situations. It was almost better when people _didn't_ like her.

"Well, uh… If you need anything else, just look for me, okay? I'll be more than happy to help with whatever," Ruby said. "I should go take a really long bath now."

"You should," the mother said. "May the future be kind to you, Avatar."

Ruby nodded cheerfully and turned around. She started down the steps of the house, a new spring in her walk. Nothing put her in a better mood than-

"Oh, that's a shame…" she heard the mother say behind her. "Your cloak…"

Ruby looked back confusedly, then lowered her eyes, trying to get a good look at her back. Her cloak was nearly torn into two pieces, only held together by the thinnest fabric at the very top.

Her breath stopped.

All noise ceased.

The world became a blur before her eyes.

* * *

She stomped down the street towards the house – her home – but it wasn't really her home, it never had been and never would be – and the people inside weren't her family and would never be her family – she was _alone_ now – had always been…

She ripped the cloak off her shoulders and threw it on the street, then stormed inside the house, slamming the door behind her.

* * *

"Ruby? What are you doing?"

Slowly, Ruby opened her eyes. Weiss was crouching beside her, staring at her like she was a being from another planet. Ruby blinked a few times, then sat up. "What do you mean, what am I doing?"

"You were sleeping on the floor," Weiss said. "I know you prefer trees, but this is a new level of weird. Care to explain?"

"Huh?"

Ruby looked around, and everything came back to her. Mother needing help. Sewer Grimm. And…

A sick feeling sank down her stomach.

"I… I was just tired," she mumbled.

"So tired you couldn't climb onto your tree? Or the _sofa_ , for that matter?" Weiss sighed. "Never mind. What got you so tired? I was a little worried when you didn't come back last night. I waited a long time, but…"

"Oh, I was just doing Avatar stuff," Ruby said quietly. "No biggie. Promise."

"Hmm." Weiss stood up. "Well, I found your cloak on the porch. Guess you were so tired you didn't notice it slipped off your shoulders. Here it is."

Before Ruby could say anything, Weiss reached for something on the living room table beside them and tossed it at her.

Ruby's cloak fell on her lap, clean, soft, and whole. She looked down at it, thinking she was seeing things – she had just woken up, after all – or maybe she was still dreaming?

"What's with that look?" Weiss asked. "You're acting unusually weird, Ruby, even for your standards."

"My cloak… It got ripped last night!" Ruby looked up. "Weiss, did you fix it?"

"What? No, I didn't," Weiss said.

"Jaune? Pyrrha? Cinder?"

"They're all still sleeping." Weiss crossed her arms. "I did think it looked nicer than usual. Are you sure you ripped it, Ruby?"

"Yes, I am very sure." Ruby shook her head in disbelief. "Who fixed it, then…?"

Maybe she was thinking about it all wrong, and this wasn't her cloak at all. But at closer inspection, she could see the old trace of where it had been damaged last night, as well as all the tiny accidents that it had endured over the years. Everything was mended so well, it was like the cloak was brand new.

"I don't know, Ruby. You should just be grateful, is what I think," Weiss said. "Now, get up. We can't have you inside the house smelling like this. Goodness, Ruby, what did you get up to last night?!"

"I was fulfilling my Avatar duties!" Ruby protested. "You can't blame me for getting a little stinky for the greater good!"

"It's always Avatar duties with you!" Weiss scoffed. " _Oops, I broke your favorite hairbrush, Weiss. But it was because of my Avatar duties, okay? Please forgive me!_ "

"I already told you, there was a Beowolf going through your bag!" Ruby said. "If I hadn't intervened, a lot more stuff would have been broken!"

"Whatever. You know what you did, Miss Avatar." Weiss snapped her fingers. "Up. Bath. Do not make me treat you like a dog."

Ruby bit her tongue to stop herself from saying that Weiss _was_ treating her like a dog, already. With a groan, she got on her feet, and took perverse pleasure in how Weiss had to pinch her nose as she walked past.

Before she left the house, Ruby looked down at her cloak and pressed it tightly against her cheek. The familiar smell and warmth brought a smile to her face.

It was good to be home.

* * *

_The Tale of Jaune_

Jaune kicked a rock lazily as he walked on the streets of the middle ring, his hands on his pockets and head bowed low. This really was a boring, dreadful day, but he really shouldn't be surprised at this point. It seemed every day was like this lately.

_Sorry, Jaune, I can't right now. I'm spent after all the training I did yesterday._

_No. I have more important matters to attend to at the palace. Perhaps we can hang out together in a few years, once the fate of the world is not at stake._

_I'm teaching Ruby some advanced earthbending techniques today, sorry. Maybe later. Unless you want to watch?_

_You must be_ really _desperate if you're coming to me. But I'm afraid I don't fit your definition of… fun._

Jaune shuddered. He really had tried _all_ his options, but nobody had time for him. It was funny – now that they were safe and didn't have to move every minute of every day, he was seeing far less of his friends. He understood why, and he didn't resent them for doing things that were of real importance… but he couldn't help but feel useless.

Everyone had their roles. He was just there to… be a friend. And, as it turned out, nobody needed that right now.

"Oh, well." He kicked the rock further away. "At least I get good food every day and there are no Grimm trying to kill me. Who am I to complain?"

The rock hit a curb and jumped up, flying over a fence to land in the grassy courtyard of a house. Jaune stopped to look, and a moment later, sighed in resignation. Yes, he was going to go chasing after a rock. This was his life now.

He stepped onto the sidewalk, then moved one leg over the fence, holding onto the wood, expecting it to crumble under his weight any second. Fortunately, that did not happen, and he managed to put both feet back on the ground. His shoes sank halfway through muddy soil, and the grass swept wall past his knees, almost reaching his stomach. Suddenly, Jaune was very aware of the loud cricketing of bugs all around him, and his skin started to itch all over.

Swallowing dry, he looked up, but what he saw only made him feel worse. A house stood at the other side of the courtyard, and it looked like it had been abandoned even longer before the lawn, with wooden walls that didn't seem nearly sturdy enough to hold up the ceiling, and windows so dusty he could see nothing on the other side. It was a far cry from the rest of the properties in the Middle Ring.

"Okay. That's a, uh… nice sight." Jaune put his hands on his hips and breathed out slowly. "You know what. I don't think any rock is worth this."

He started to turn, but a strange noise caught his attention. It was so quiet, for a moment he thought he had imagined it, but then it happened again, and there was no mistaking what it was. Jaune took a deep breath, then turned back around and walked further into the courtyard, approaching the house.

As he neared the house, he found the child, hiding under the steps that lead into the front door. She was trembling all over, with her arms wrapped around her knees, eyes puffed and red. Jaune looked around, trying to find whatever she was afraid of, but aside from the house, there was nothing he thought could elicit such fear.

"Hey," he said softly, and she looked up at him, eyes going wide. Jaune raised a hand amicably, then slowly lowered into a crouch in front of her. "Sorry for startling you. I heard you crying… Is something wrong?"

"I'm not crying!" the girl exclaimed, raising her chin proudly. "I don't cry. Crying is for babies!"

"Well, yeah, crying is pretty much the only thing babies do." Jaune shrugged. "So, if you're not crying… What's up? Why are you down there?"

"It's none of your business! Leave me alone!" The girl backed away slightly, fixing him with a scalding stare.

Jaune sighed. This was what he got for going out of his way to help a stranger. But as annoying as this little girl was being, he wasn't about to leave her alone in the state she was.

"Look, it's okay if you're scared. I'm not gonna judge you. Just…" He gestured at the courtyard. "I don't think you should be hanging out here, especially on your own. Doesn't look like a nice plane for anyone to be, don't you agree?"

"I don't care." The girl crossed her arms vehemently. "I can't go… There's something I need to do."

"What is it, then? Maybe I can help you out."

The girl looked at him, as if trying to discern whether he was being serious or not. Eventually, she uncrossed her arms and crawled out of her hiding place. She stood up, and though she refused to look at him, her posture was much less hostile.

"I need to go into that house and get something," she said. "It'll be really quick."

"Okay." Jaune looked at the house. It was even worse from up close. Just his luck that helping the girl meant going inside such a creepy place. "What are we looking for? It'll go faster if you tell me what it looks like."

"I already told you, it's none of your business! Just go with me and watch my back, okay?" The girl pursed her lips. "They say a family of Grimm lives inside this house, and they eat anyone who goes in uninvited. But if we don't make a noise…"

Jaune nodded, deciding to humor the girl rather than trying to explain to her that wasn't how Grimm worked. He doubted she would even listen to him, anyway.

He went up the steps and peered through the slightly ajar door, wondering if there was anyone, or _anything_ , inside. There was no way Grimm were hiding there, but that didn't mean something else wasn't. He wished he had his sword with him…

"Okay, take my hand," he said, pushing the door open. "We don't wanna get separated in the dark."

The girl made a show of glaring at him, but the quickness with which she obeyed him betrayed her true feelings. Jaune went in, and as darkness shrouded them, he felt the girl's hand squeeze his fingers hard.

"You've got any idea where the thing is?" he asked.

"Shh! The Grimm!" the girl whispered, her voice filled with fear. "T-the back room! G-go, before they find us!"

Jaune walked through the darkness, feeling the space in front of him with his hand. His fingers brushed against a wall, and as he explored it further, he soon found the corner of a doorway. He squeezed the girl's hand and went through, and now he could vaguely make out a long hallway. Several rooms sprung on both sides, and one at the very end.

"Y-you know what…" the girl started walking backward. "I d-don't need to go, you can do it alone…"

"Nope. You're not bailing now!" Jaune said. "You have to be brave, or else you're gonna get eaten."

"B-but…" The girl hugged his leg. "Okay… Let's go!"

Jaune walked forward, ignoring the other doors as he went for the last one. It was weird – if it was any other situation, he would be scared out of his mind, but having to take care of this child seemed to have brought another side of him, and he wasn't hesitating at all.

He reached the door and pushed it open. It dragged against the floor, producing a shrill noise, and eventually came to a halt. He looked in, but couldn't make out anything in the dark.

"Well? Where is it?" he asked.

The girl swayed back and forth on the balls of her feet, biting her lip nervously. Jaune patted her encouragingly on the back, and she looked up at him, tears welling up in her eyes. He smiled at her and nodded.

She shuffled into the room, disappearing in the darkness for a few seconds, then came running back to him, nearly knocking him over as she wrapped herself around his torso. " _I got it go go go go go!_ "

Jaune ran back the way they'd came and jumped out the the front door. As soon as they were in the open, the girl let go of him and started spinning and jumping in place, laughing in delight. Jaune looked at her and saw she was holding a rag doll of a girl in her hands.

"Huh." Jaune walked to the girl. "So that's what you were looking for."

"Yes. Her name's Sapphire, 'cause her eyes are really really blue…" The girl looked up at him, a challenge written in her eyes. "…and she's _not_ silly!"

"Yeah, of course not. I never said she was!" Jaune chuckled. "How did Sapphire end up inside that place anyway?"

The girl pursed her lips and stared at the doll for a while, as if she were having a very intense conversation with it. Finally, she nodded and looked at him again.

"My friends caught me playing with Sapphire and they took her… you know, just as a joke…" She blushed. "But then I started crying, and they said I was being a baby, and they ran away with her. They said if I wanted Sapphire back, I just needed to get her from inside the house, but I was never going to do that… since I'm a baby and all…"

Jaune frowned. It had been a while, but he had some childhood memories of being the target of pranks like that too. It seemed that no matter which nation they were from, children could be even crueler than adults sometimes.

"Listen, I think these kids you said are your friends… Well, they're not really your friends at all." Jaune crouched in front of her. "I think they're very stupid to treat you like that. You can do much better."

"They were right, though." The girl's eyes welled up with tears. "If you hadn't shown up, I would never have gone inside…"

"So what? I wouldn't go in there alone either!" Jaune shook his head. "More importantly, this stuff about crying and babies… that's stupid! Everybody cries, that's just a fact – and there's nothing wrong with that." He paused. "Let me tell you something. My friends are all really, really strong. Like, they could kill that Grimm family from the house without breaking a sweat. _That_ strong. And guess what, they all cry sometimes. And that's why I'm not ashamed to be afraid or sad or dumb from time to time – because if they can do that and still be the strongest people I know, then so can I!"

For a moment, the girl just stared at him, blinking sporadically.

"That's kinda dumb," she muttered, and her lips curved into a shy smile. "But also kinda very smart…"

"I know, right?" Jaune grinned. "It's part of my charm." He got up and patted the girl on the head. "Alright, so what you're gonna do now is get out of this place, find your supposed friends, give them a very stern talking-to, and if they don't apologize, you have my permission to smack them across the face with Sapphire. Understood?"

The girl brightened up immediately. "Yes, sir! I will do exactly as you say!" She smiled at him, then turned around and ran out of the courtyard, disappearing around the street corner.

Jaune whistled. In hindsight, maybe he shouldn't have encouraged a little girl to use violence against her friends just because of a stupid prank. It wasn't exactly what one would call a good formative experience. Ruby would not be proud. Best to omit that part of the story when he shared it later.

Then again, he probably wouldn't tell anyone about it. With all the exciting and important business everyone was busy with, they probably wouldn't care about any boring story he had to tell.

Oh, well.

"Now where's that stupid rock?"

* * *

_The Tale of Taiyang_

There was one thing to be said about the box-lifting-and-moving profession. It really built character.

And that was literally the only thing there was to be said about it.

"Oof," Taiyang said, setting his last assigned box for the morning period. "Alright, boys, that's my part done for now! Tell the boss-man I'll be back soon."

"Already, Mister Lee?" one of his coworkers said, wiping the sweat off his brow. "You're a powerhouse, you are! I've barely gotten through half of my load and you're already done!"

"Well, I've got motivation to spare. My daughter isn't gonna feed herself!" Taiyang laughed. "I mean, she will, but you get what I mean. Anyway, I'm going to the market. Be back in an hour."

"Sure thing. Maybe I'll have matched you by then… maybe…"

Taiyang nodded, making for the exit of the warehouse. But as he reached it, he stopped briefly to look back at his coworkers – one in particular, just a boy, couldn't be older than Yang. He was normally very energetic, but today he looked strangely pale, and he hadn't said a single word the entire morning.

"You okay there, pal?" Taiyang called. "You're looking kinda bad. Coming down with the sickness, maybe?"

"Huh? N-no, Mister Lee." The boy looked at him and nearly lost his grasp on his box. "I'm just… It's nothing, really! Haha!"

"If you say so." Taiyang shrugged. "See you later, boys."

He got out, waited a moment, then looked back into the warehouse. The boy was sweating heavily now, and his eyes were darting all over the place, like he thought someone might jump him at any second. Something was wrong with him, no doubt about it.

Well. That was a problem for later.

* * *

As much as Taiyang liked going to the Lower Ring market, he didn't have much time to peruse its many stalls this lovely afternoon. He already knew what he wanted today, and he needed to get to all of it fast if he wanted everything to work out perfectly, and he wanted to get back to work sooner rather than later.

His first stop was at the carpenter who had made him the custom dummies for Yang's training. He had paid him half in advance, and was paying the other half now that the job was done. It was a little pricey, but he would have gladly paid more for such good craftsmanship. He did slip in a couple more coins than the agreed amount, and if the carpenter noticed, he didn't say a thing.

After that, Taiyang paid a visit to the street kids who had carried the dummies to the house and paid them for the job. He'd seen them looking miserable a few days prior and had offered them the job. As payment, he gave them a ball for them to play with. Hopefully they wouldn't be nearly as bored from now on. Although, knowing kids, they'd probably find a way to ruin the thing fast.

With his debts settled, Taiyang went to a fish stall and selected some good-looking tuna for his planned dinner tonight – well, not _his_ dinner, but that was beside the point. He went ahead and got some spices too. Blake would probably appreciate that.

Lastly, he bought a little vial of perfume he'd seen the other day. It was an odd idea, yes, but he didn't see anything wrong with it. He might as well go all in with the plan.

At the end of his shopping spree, Taiyang still had half of his money left. He had been saving up for a few weeks now, thinking he'd need a lot more than ended up being necessary. Perhaps he could buy that bull-tiger coat he'd been dreaming about lately…

He would give that some thought. First, he needed to go back to work and deal with some loose ends.

* * *

"Hey, pal."

The boy jumped so high, Taiyang had the strangest feeling he might be an airbender. But then he came back to the ground and turned around, sweat pouring down his nose and cheeks, and Taiyang knew that was just his imagination playing games on him.

"M-Mister Lee…" The boy gulped. "I didn't see you w-were back…"

"I've been back for more than an hour. Already finished my load, actually." Taiyang pointed to his neat stack of boxes at the corner of the warehouse. "You must be in _some_ trouble if you didn't notice until now, Mister… What's your name again?"

"I-it's… Lee." The boy smiled nervously. "F-funny coincidence, right?"

"Right." Either the boy was using a fake name too, or _Lee_ was even more common than Taiyang had thought. "So, what are you in trouble for?"

"W-what? I'm not in trouble, Mister Lee. Why would you think that?"

Taiyang crossed his arms and stared him in the eyes, hoping that he would drop the act, but Lee continued to fidget nervously in place. Deciding to take a more drastic approach to the problem, Taiyang took him by the shoulder and lead him out of the warehouse.

"Alright, are you more comfortable here? Nobody's gonna hear us, and I'm not gonna tell anyone what you say," he said. "That face you're wearing, I know it well. You're not just nervous, you're desperate. You were in an impossible situation and somehow got yourself into an even worse one. Now you're freaking over it. But if you tell me, I might be able to help."

"I… You're right, Mister Lee. I'm in deep trouble, and it's all my fault," Lee said. "My auntie, she's sick, really sick. She's always been. We always were able to get the stuff to help her, though… until now. My da lost his job last month, and the price for the herbs got even higher 'cause of the war… now my pay can't cover it…"

"I'm very sorry to hear that," Taiyang said. "Here, take this."

He took his coin bag and handed it to Lee. The boy looked at it, then at him, his eyes going wide. "B-but Mister Lee, I can't accept this… Didn't you say you have a d-daughter to feed?"

"I was joking. Yan- _Leena_ is working her own job, if the going gets tough, she can rely on herself for a while." Taiyang stepped back, lifting his hands way out of reach. "I'm not taking the money back. It's yours. Hopefully it'll cover what you're lacking for a couple months."

"Mister Lee… Thank you so much!" Lee looked away, grimacing. "But the thing is, that's not all my troubles… You see, I really needed to get the money, so I got talking with some guys. They were interested in this warehouse - it's got a lot of expensive stuff inside, you know… And I know how to get in, seeing as I work here…"

"You agreed to let them inside to rob the place." Taiyang shook his head. "The pay was good, I hope?"

"Yeah, I guess… But I shouldn't have agreed. It was wrong. I know my whole family would disown me if they learned about it, even if it helped my auntie," Lee said. "But maybe I can give them this money and they'll back off. I know it's kinda messed up, but you did say you weren't taking it back no matter what, Mister Lee…"

"Forget that idea. When are they coming to rob the warehouse?"

"Tonight, actually. One hour from nightfall, was the agreement." Lee frowned. "Mister Lee, you're not thinking of confronting those guys, are you? They're a really mean bunch. I think a couple of them might be benders, too!"

"Doesn't matter to me. Here's what's gonna happen, Lee," Taiyang said. "You're gonna finish your shift, go buy your aunt her medicine, and then you're gonna enjoy a nice night with your family. Got it?"

Lee stared at him, stunned. Slowly, he nodded his head, then mumbled a thank you and walked back inside. Taiyang took a deep breath, wondering just why he could never keep out of other people's troubles.

* * *

It was good that Yang wasn't entirely happy about the new training regimen. Yes, she wasn't getting results, and from the sounds of things that was causing some property damage already, but he would be far more worried if she was all radiant suddenly. She wasn't supposed to be satisfied until her firebending was back, and Taiyang would wait patiently for as long as it took for that to happen.

Meanwhile, he could still work on making her life as wonderful as it could be. This was the motivation behind his latest plan. But even so, it wasn't for her good only.

"Are you _sure_ about this, Mister Xiao Long?" Blake said, looking down at the fresh tuna dubiously. "When I told you about the recipe, I wasn't saying you should make it… let alone me…"

"That's why neither _you_ nor _I_ are making it. _We_ are making it. It will be a joint effort!" Taiyang said. "What do you say about it? Yang was very pleased when I told her we would be having a special dinner tonight. It would really make her day, I think."

For just a second, Blake's ears shot up atop of her head, then settled down again. He knew he hadn't just imagined that, though, because suddenly Blake seemed very interest in the color of the tablecloth.

"Okay," she said quietly. "If you think we're not gonna mess it up…"

"Oh, we will do great!" Taiyang patted her on the shoulder. "Just as a warning, though, it will probably turn out that I won't be able to attend dinner." He grinned. "And by _probably_ , I mean _surely_. It'll be just you and Yang."

The slightest hint of a frown appeared on Blake's forehead. "Okay… What will you be doing?"

"Nothing you should worry about, trust me. Oh, and you'll find candles on that drawer over there, I believe. You should be able to light those without my help," Taiyang said. "Also, you'll find a gift from me in your room. Something nice you might want to use tonight. But it's your choice, of course!"

"What? Mister Xiao Long, are you…?" Blake stopped herself. "This is a prank. Yang's around the corner, isn't she?"

"Nope. I'm being completely serious," Taiyang said. "You're part of the family, Blake. I'm just hoping you two don't take too long to make it official! Eh? _Eh_?"

Blake stared at him, mouth agape. She looked torn between being mortified, suspicious, and amused, which nearly had him rolling on the floor laughing. Seeing Blake's reaction was half the reason he was doing this, and so far, she hadn't disappointed.

"We… should start making the thing… dinner… _fish_ ," Blake said.

"Yep. Let's get to work."

* * *

Taiyang saw them approaching the warehouse right when Lee told him they would. They were boys and girls, some of them way too young to be involved in this mess, and they all carried tools in their hands, brandished as weapons – crowbars, wrenches, shovels… Lee himself wasn't among them. Good – he had taken his advice after all.

As they stopped near the entrance of the warehouse, one of them stepped forward, a girl who looked the oldest of the bunch. She looked around with a glare in her eyes, then shook her head and turned to look at her friends.

"The idiot didn't show up. We can't back off now, though, this is our best opportunity. Let's break in with what we brought."

The group responded with a series of cheers and waves, but before they could get to work, Taiyang stepped out of the shadows, putting himself between them and the warehouse.

"Sorry, kiddos. I don't think I can let that happen."

"And who are you, old man?" The leader whipped around to face him. "Whatever, it doesn't matter – just step aside, forget you saw any of us, or else you're gonna get hurt."

"Threatening an old man? That's not a very nice thing to do," Taiyang said. "Come on, guys, I don't want things to go bad here. You can quit now before you've made any serious mistakes."

"We ain't listening to you! I didn't wanna have to hurt you, but you're forcing my hand!" the girl growled. "Leave, or else I'm gonna crush you with my earthbending powers!"

"Okay. You can go ahead and try, then."

The girl lifted her hands in front of her face and held them there, arms trembling. A drop of sweat rolled down her forehead. Taiyang smiled at her.

"C-come on, guys!" she yelled suddenly. "Get him out of the way already!"

Taiyang wasn't surprised about that turn of events, but the speed at which the girl's friends obeyed was quite shocking. It seemed she wasn't leader just because of her age. Regardless, moral and trust wouldn't win this fight for them.

As the they reached him, Taiyang was careful to repel them with only a fraction of his strength. These kids weren't as tough and disciplined as Yang or Blake. Even without his firebending, there was a real chance he could hurt them. So he stuck to taking their weapons off their hands and shoving or knocking them away, and once they were all on the floor, he looked at the leader again.

"Well that was fun, and exercise is always good for a guy my age," he said, cracking his neck. "You're not really an earthbender, are you?"

The girl glared at him for a moment, then dropped her fists and bowed her head in shame.

"Just as I thought. Lying about your power can get you around a lot of trouble, but in the end it's just a trick. Besides, some people that would take real offense to you pretending you're a bender," Taiyang said. "I get it, though. Just judge your opponents better next time, okay?"

"I'm… We're very sorry, mister," she mumbled. "Please don't report us to the guards. Or… at least let the rest of them leave. I'm the one who came up with the plan."

"Now, now. I'm not gonna get you into trouble. You already did a fine job of that yourself." Taiyang walked to her, offering a friendly smile. "You didn't do any real harm to anyone, and I know all of you probably have your reasons to be doing this stuff. But stealing isn't the way to solve your hardships. Finding honest work might be hard, but you'll learn that it's much more rewarding than the alternative."

The girl nodded hesitantly.

"Good. Now scram, and don't ever try anything like this again," he said. "Next time you'll probably not find someone as cool and hip as me."

The girl nodded again, then started getting her friends up from the floor. Once they were all up, she turned back to him and mumbled what sounded like another apology, then they all left in a hurry.

Alone once again, Taiyang sighed in contentment. Another good deed done. He had no way to know whether the kids would heed his advice, but he was hoping for the best. If that girl was half as good of a leader as she appeared, she would keep the rest in line from now on.

The confrontation with the kids had taken a lot less time than he had expected, though, and now he found himself with the whole night ahead of him. He could go back home and join the girls' dinner, but that would defeat the purpose of it. Although it would be pretty funny to see their reactions to him suddenly barging in.

There was another thing he could do, his original plan for the night before he got involved with Lee's troubles. It wasn't a good thing for him to do, not exactly, and he was sure he would feel worse for it in the long run…

But he wasn't nearly as strong-willed as he liked to think. Already regretting his decision, Taiyang walked away from the warehouse, heading towards the Middle Ring.

* * *

It was a nice house. Nice courtyard too. And if he was correct, there was a pond near the back which looked very pleasant for a quick swim. He bet it was cozy inside too, much more than the house they were borrowing from Sun.

Taiyang shook his head. He shouldn't be here. All it took would be one person seeing him, and everything would change drastically. Maybe that's why he had come here, why he was staying for so long, just staring and hoping for it to happen…

But that wasn't what Yang wanted. It wasn't what she needed right now. And he had to do what was best for his daughter. Even if it meant…

He stopped that train of thought, forcing himself to turn around. It had been long enough. He would have to be satisfied with what he'd seen. Now, it was time to leave. But just as he was about to go, a new sound made him look back, and he saw… her.

Ruby was practically running down the street, her steps like thunder against the pavement, cheeks glistening with tears. She stopped for just a second in front of the house to throw something at the ground, then stormed inside, slamming the door behind her.

It took a long time for Taiyang to find the strength to move again. Slowly, he walked towards the house. What he wouldn't give to walk inside there and wrap her in a hug, to tell her that everything would be okay…

But it wasn't the right time, and she had lived fifteen years without him by her side. He wasn't so self-centered as to think she needed him. That wasn't his place, and the knowledge of that hurt him more than anything.

He looked down at the ground. Lying there was a red cloak, barely holding itself together.

"Summer…"

He bent down and picked up the cloak. It wasn't his place to be with Ruby, but that didn't mean he couldn't do something nice for her. It wouldn't make up for fifteen years, but… it would be a good start.

* * *

Taiyang closed the door gently behind him, not wanting to make any more noise than was necessary. The girls were sleeping by now, hopefully, and he didn't want to ruin their dreams. Lifting himself on the tip of his toes, Taiyang edged towards the stairs.

"Mister Xiao Long?"

He stopped before the first step and looked towards the living room. Blake was sitting on the sofa, seeming a little uneasy.

"Blake. I didn't think you'd be up still," Taiyang said. "What are you doing down here?"

"Nothing. Just can't sleep," Blake replied. "What's that on your hand?"

Taiyang looked down at Ruby's cloak. If he wanted to fix it and get it back to Ruby before dawn, he needed to act fast, but… Blake looked like she could use some company.

"A gift for a friend." He put the cloak down on the stairs, then went to sit down on the sofa beside Blake. "What's on your mind? Did the dinner not go well?"

"No, it went excellent. It was very… fun, I guess." Blake frowned. "Mister Xiao Long, I didn't jump to conclusions, right? You meant tonight to be like a…" She paused, as if the next word was particularly difficult to get out. "… _date_. For me and Yang. Right?"

"Yeah, that was the gist of it. I mean, it didn't _have_ to be a date, it would be just as good if it was just a good time between friends… but I was hoping it would be more, yes," Taiyang said. "I know Yang cares for you a great deal. And, correct me if I'm mistaken, you care for her in the same way. So I thought, why not do something about it?"

Blake didn't reply. She was completely still, but her eyes looked very much alive with a myriad of emotions.

"I can't guess how you're feeling, Blake, but here's what I can tell you." Taiyang leaned towards her. "Love is the most complicated thing in the world. Sometimes, it's the most wonderful thing ever, and you wonder how anyone could ever live without it… and other times, it can cause a whole lot of pain. Too much pain, to the point that it might be better if that love never existed at all."

"That's… very insightful, Mister Xiao Long," Blake said hesitantly. "I'm not sure what I'm supposed to take from it, though."

"Just that it's okay to feel strange about your feelings. You can take as long as you need to understand them, and that's completely fine." He smiled sadly. "I'm sorry if I thrust you into this before you were ready. I shouldn't have been so careless."

"No, it's okay. I think it's good that you did it. It's… forced me to think differently about some things," Blake said. "But you could have been a little gentler on the build-up, yes."

Taiyang shrugged. She had a point, but there wasn't a doubt in his mind that Yang and Blake would have kept circling each other forever if he hadn't taken action.

"Well, it was a good talk, Blake," Taiyang said, getting up. "I would like to continue it, but there's something I need to see to."

"Now? It's past midnight, I'm pretty sure," Blake noted. "Don't you ever rest, Mister Xiao Long?"

"Not today, Blake. Not today."

* * *

Fixing the cloak was no easy task. Not only had it been somehow badly damaged recently, but time had also taken its toll on it. If this were one of his clothes, Taiyang would have given up immediately and instead bought a replacement, but that wasn't the case. Ruby clearly cared about this cloak, so in extension, he cared about it too.

In his youth, he had protested endlessly when his family had insisted he take lessons on disciplines such as etiquette, wardrobe, and sewing. Those were, after all, not things a _real man_ cared about! But that had been a long time ago. Today, he was very grateful he'd had the opportunity to undertake such training, and with such good teachers to boot.

He pulled everything he had in his arsenal to get the cloak to an even better shape than before it had been destroyed. He worked tirelessly, often casting a look out the window of his room, expecting to find the sun rising any time now, signaling that he was too late. But that had yet to happen – there was still hope.

Finally, he finished, and the cloak was whole once again. He had also pressed and polished it, giving it a much sharper look. He looked out the window again – still nighttime, but barely so. He needed to run, _now_!

* * *

The skies were turning blue when Taiyang finally reached the house in the Middle Ring. He was so delirious from the running and lack of sleep, he almost barged right inside, but caught himself when his foot fell on the first step leading up to the porch.

He stood there for a moment, pondering on what to do instead. Perhaps he should knock on the door and hand it to whoever answered? No, that would be as bad as walking inside. He could find someone else to deliver the cloak for him… but then Ruby might ask them who had sent them, and she would probably figure out it was him from a description alone.

There was an obvious solution, of course. The problem was, just like before, he was hoping something would go wrong, that he would get so see her reaction, then take her to Yang, and from there…

He hung the cloak on the porch, turned around, and walked away. It hurt, but… it was good enough for her, so it was good enough for him.

* * *

_The Tale of Blake_

It was a quiet day. There were barely any people roaming the streets of the Middle Ring, and even less going inside _Banana Business_. Maybe it was the weather – the sky had been gray since Blake had woken up, and she could see storm clouds gathering in the distance. Soon, the pouring would begin, and _Banana Business_ would be lucky to have any business at all.

How terrible.

It wasn't that Blake didn't take her job seriously. As long as Sun trusted and paid her fairly, she would take it seriously. But standing outside the restaurant, leaning against a wall with her arms crossed and throwing mean looks at anyone vaguely suspicious that came too close wasn't exactly the most engaging way to spend eight hours every day. She had entertained the thought of bringing a book with her, but Sun probably wouldn't appreciate that.

Maybe this weather was a good thing. If the storm turned out half as bad as it looked, Sun was probably going to close the restaurant and she would get to go inside until it cleared, and she would have Yang to keep her company. Anything was better than standing guard, but that, in particular, sounded like a good use of her time.

And it wasn't like anybody would try to rob the place when it was-

"Hey, get back here!"

The door of the restaurant burst open beside her, and a small shadow passed by, so fast Blake's eyes could barely keep up with it. Sun came running a moment later, looking bewildered.

"Blake! Did you see her?!" he exclaimed. "Where did she go?"

"She?" Blake asked.

"A little girl! I caught her taking a handful of bananas from the storage at the back," Sun said. "That little scamp… Who does she think he is, stealing from honest-working people just like that?! She's not the Earth Queen!"

"I'm pretty sure that's not what the Earth Queen does, Sun." Blake grinned. "Unless you're making political commentary?"

"What? Stop it, Blake! Stop using words to confuse me!" Sun shook his head, his tail whipping through the air nervously behind him. "We can't afford to just let people steal from us like that. It's hard enough to meet bottom line with the stock we have… If it gets any lower…"

Blake doubted the situation was as dire as Sun thought, but he was already distraught enough, so she wasn't about to argue with him about it. She looked at the sky and the approaching clouds, then sighed. The things she did for friendship.

"I'll get your bananas back, Sun. She can't have run far - I'll ask around if anyone has seen her," she said. "Can you hold down the fort while I'm away?"

"Yeah, of course," Sun said. "But are you sure you wanna do this? Looks like things are gonna get real spooky soon. I don't want you to put yourself at risk just for some bananas."

"Don't worry about it. I'll come back or take shelter somewhere if it gets rough," Blake assured. "But you'd better up my pay this week."

"Now wait a second, I never asked you to-"

" _And_ I get to bring a book to work from now on. It's that, or the bananas are lost forever."

"…Fine. Just go already."

* * *

Of course, asking around for help wasn't half as easy as Blake had thought at first. A year ago, she would have known better, but spending time away from the big cities with Yang and her father had made her forget.

Most of the people she approached on the street didn't even stoop to look at her. When they did, their faces quickly twisted in disgust when they realized what she was, then they scurried away like she'd never been there. It was so typical, Blake couldn't even be offended after the first couple times it happened.

The few people that talked didn't have much information to share, if any at all. Blake got the sense they only gave her the time of day out of some weird sense of obligation – it was like they had to help her _because_ she was a faunus. It was almost worse than how the others treated her.

But eventually, she did get something useful from an old vendor who claimed to know the girl – _a little one of your kind, always scurrying around, dirty all over_. Apparently, her hiding place was in an alleyway nearby. Blake left for there while the vendor was still busy badmouthing the girl.

When she got there, raindrops were starting to fall from the sky, and a thunder boomed in the distance. Near the middle of the alleyway was a stack of used boxes and newspapers. Blake saw the girl sitting under it, her attention on something she was holding under her chin.

"Hey," Blake called, making sure not to sound too threatening. "I'm here to talk."

The girl jumped to her feet, knocking over the boxes. Something fell between her feet – a half-eaten banana. Blake looked at it, then back at the girl's face, and the moment they crossed eyes, she knew this wasn't going to go as she hoped.

"Don't-" Blake raised her arms in front of her face, blocking a box kicked her way. When her vision was clear again, she saw the girl's ankle disappearing over the corner at the other end of the alleyway. "Wait! I'm not here to hurt you!"

She gave chase, catching sight of the girl again once she was out of the alleyway. The streets were completely empty now, the rain having become a full-blown storm in a matter of seconds. Ponds were starting to form on the uneven spaces on the ground, and water was running down roofs like waterfalls.

"Get back!" Blake yelled, her priorities changing once she realized the situation they were in. "You're gonna get hurt if you keep this up!"

"No! Leave me alone!" the girl yelled back at her.

Blake sprinted even harder, her superior age and height allowing her to catch up to the girl in just a few seconds, but just as she was about to grab her, she lost her footing and went sliding on the inundated street. Blake reached out with her hand, breaking her fall, then looked up, her soaked hair partly blocking her vision.

Her heart stopped beating for a moment when she saw the girl again. She wasn't on the street anymore – somehow, she had managed to climb onto the tiled rooftop of a house, holding a bag of what Blake assumed were the stolen bananas above her head.

"Hey! Get down here!" Blake yelled. "It's not safe up there!"

"Whatever! I-I'm not scared!" the girl replied. "Leave me alone, and I'll get down! But only if you leave!"

As good as that sounded, Blake knew that solution wasn't nearly enough. She couldn't walk away until she knew the kid was safe. "How are you getting down? The rooftop's all wet, you're gonna slide and fall, and there's no telling what might happen then!"

"I don't care! I'll find a way down!" There was a thunder, quickly followed by lightning that briefly blinded Blake. "M-maybe I'll just stay up here! I-it's not like anyone cares what happens to me a-anyway!"

"Come on, kid! You know that's not true!" Blake shouted. "I care! Why else would I be here?"

"To take back your bananas! _My_ bananas!"

"I don't care about your stupid bananas! You can keep them, they weren't even mine in the first place!" Blake spread her arms. "Come on! I'll catch you!"

The girl looked down at her, then up at the sky. Another thunder – another lightning. "O-okay! I'm going!"

She jumped, and Blake stumbled forward to match her descent. She only barely caught the girl, and it was wonder she didn't collapse under her weight. Gritting her teeth, Blake lifted the girl higher, feeling little arms wrap around her neck, and started down the street towards the space below a shop's canopy.

Blake put the girl down, and immediately she backed away, stopping just at the edge of the canopy where the rain couldn't touch her. As Blake's watched, the girl's skin turned red, then blue.

_A little one of your kind_. Of course. Everything made sense now. The girl was a chameleon faunus – that was how she had snuck into the restaurant without anyone else noticing. And why she was so desperate…

"Hey, you don't need to be scared. Not anymore. I meant it when I told you I wasn't going to hurt you," Blake said, crouching so she was eye-level with the girl. "What's your name?"

The girl looked at her suspiciously, as if wondering what use Blake could have for knowing her name. "It's… it's Ilia."

"Ilia. My name's Blake. Do you know where your parents are?"

"They're gone. Left to fight in the war. At least that's what the soldiers told me." Ilia glared at her own feet, her fists trembling at her sides. "I know they were lying to me."

"I'm sorry, Ilia. I really am," Blake said softly. "You have to understand, you aren't going to get anyone's attention by stealing things, or by pulling dangerous stunts like you did back there. Not the good kind of attention, at least. You have to _ask_ for help when you need it."

"I tried that! I already told you, nobody cares! Everyone ignores me like I'm invisible!" Ilia stomped her foot, her skin turning red once again.

"I would have helped you if you had asked me. But you didn't, so… who's really in the wrong here?" Blake paused. "I know how you feel. You think the whole world is against you. And, yeah, you're not wrong to feel that way… but there are people who care, and they don't have to be faunus like me. You can't give up looking just because most people are terrible." She offered Ilia a hand. "Can you blame them for not making an effort when you aren't either?"

As Ilia's breathing calmed, her skin turned from red to yellow, then back to its regular tone. She stepped forward and took Blake's hand.

"Now, we're gonna wait for the storm to get a little gentler, and then we're gonna go back to the restaurant. I'm sure my friend Sun will be happy to help you… once you've apologized to him, that is," Blake said.

"I don't know…" Ilia looked at her dubiously. "That guy seemed really stupid, to be honest."

"I don't know about stupid, but he's certainly… _different_." Blake smiled. "That's why we like him, anyway."

* * *

A few minutes later, there was a short lull in the storm. It lasted just long enough for Blake to get to the restaurant, Ilia in tow. The girl was putting on a brave face, but she had yet to let go of Blake's hand. How long had she been alone in the streets, that she was so attached to the first person that came to her aid?

They walked inside, both soaked to the bone, and Blake was almost immediately captured in a bear-hug from Yang. Blake waited a few seconds, enjoying her friend's warmth, before tapping her in the back, asking to be released.

"I swear, Blake. For someone as smart as you, you can be _so dumb_ sometimes!" Yang stepped back, her eyes a gentle red. "What were you thinking, running into that storm?"

"I didn't run into it. It started while I was out there," Blake said. "Thanks for worrying about me."

"Don't you thank me! You're unbelievable. Simply unbelievable!" Yang shook her head. "And all for a pair of bananas."

"To be fair, it was way more than a pair. Six pairs at least," Blake said. "And that wasn't all I brought back."

She looked back at Ilia and nodded for her to come forward. Grudgingly, Ilia obeyed, looking up at Yang as if gauging how not-stupid she was.

"Oh, you adopted a kid, Blake? I always thought you were the type." Yang leaned on her knees, smiling at Ilia. "And aren't you the sweetest little thing I've ever seen!"

"I'm not a baby. I'm, like, eleven," Ilia said dryly. "What are you, _twelve_?"

"And she has your sass too, Blake!" Yang offered a hand. "I'm Yang. Pleasure to meet you!"

Ilia rolled her eyes. "Ilia." She took Yang's hand, and her eyes widened. "Woah, you're really hot – I mean, your hand!" She turned red. "Your hand is hot."

Yang straightened up, her lips parting into a huge smile. She winked at Blake, who could only roll her eyes and turn around to look for Sun. She didn't disagree with Ilia, but Blake didn't have the energy to engage in _that_ kind of conversation right now.

"Where's Sun?" Blake asked. "I need to talk to him."

"No you don't," Ilia whispered. "Can't we just pretend he doesn't exist?"

"Did somebody say my name?" The kitchen door opened, and Sun strode out, wearing a bandana, an apron, and a… handyman's belt? "Ladies, I am proud to inform I just fixed seven ceiling leaks! _Banana Business_ will not fall today, and neither will our spirits!" He stopped before them. "Blake, I'm so glad you're alive and I don't have to deal with the guilt of letting you go into that storm, never to be seen again. Also, where are my bananas?"

Blake gestured at Ilia. Sun's tail shot upward, and he crossed his arms, fixing a stern glare on Ilia. It seemed to have the opposite effect of what he intended, as Ilia just sighed and tossed her bag to him.

"I'm sorry I stole from you," she said quickly. "I was hungry, but I didn't have any money. Anyway, I should have tried asking for help first."

"Hmm… Okay. Apology accepted." Sun opened the bag and selected a banana from within it. "Want it?"

Ilia cocked her head in disbelief, then turned to look at Blake. "You _said_ he wasn't stupid."

"Hey, now! Do you want food or not?" Sun glared at her. "Kids these days, I tell you. Can't even accept charity right!"

Ilia took the banana from him and started peeling it, seeming quite content in ignoring Sun now that she had what she wanted from him.

"Hey, Blake," Yang said. "You're gonna get a cold if you don't get dry. Want me to get you a towel?"

"Yes, thanks," Blake replied. "Get one for Ilia too while you're at it."

"Of course!" Yang winked at Ilia. "How could I not offer my assistance to this cutie-pie?"

Ilia's skin turned bright pink, and she suddenly she seemed even more interested in her banana than before.

Blake shook her head. Today hadn't turned out to be a quiet day after all. Although the storm seemed to be calming for good now, if her ears weren't mistaken…

Blake walked to the front door and stepped outside, taking a deep breath of the light rain that was still falling. It wouldn't be long before the skies cleared, and they could go home to-

The sound of a boot stomping on a puddle broke her from her thoughts. Blake looked around, and quickly her eyes found the origin of the noise – a man was walking towards her, a full head taller than she was. A katana hung from his waist, and the upper half of his face was concealed behind a white and red mask.

"Blake. It's been a long time."


	36. Day and Night

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Sixteen: Day and Night**

* * *

As expected, the hideout was hidden in a narrow alley located in a remote corner of the Lower Ring. No one of importance would ever have any reason to go there, and no one would as much as cast a second look at the locked basement doors of a rundown house, and if they did, the painted red wolf head would certainly make them think twice about messing with it.

It was a clever arrangement, Blake had to admit. It certainly explained how she, Sun, and all his friends in the city hadn't found Adam over their many weeks of searching. She should have expected this much from him from the beginning.

As impressed as she was, however, she was also a little worried, even if she didn't quite understand why. Maybe it disturbed her how dark the place was, or perhaps it was just the awkwardness of being alone with Adam after so long. It had been years, after all, and there was a lot still left unsaid… many conversations she was dreading.

"You know the deal," Adam said, crouching before the basement door and fiddling with the locks. "I'm letting you in, but you can't tell anyone. Is that clear?"

"Of course. I won't be telling anyone," Blake frowned. "After everything you showed me, now is when you start questioning if you can trust me?"

"Nothing I've shown you so far was a secret. It was all in plain view – that was pretty much the point," Adam noted.

Blake nodded unsurely. Adam had a point. For the past week, he had been taking her around the Lower Ring to meet some people he knew. All of them faunus, all of them in miserable living conditions or almost there, and none of them with any prospect of bettering their lives, though not from a lack of trying. The invisible and the abused –whatever best served the humans around them at any given time.

"It's not about trust," Adam said, unlocking the door. "You're not exactly a low-key figure around these parts, Blake. The Guard has eased up their search, but there are still posters of you… and your friends."

He got up, the striking difference in height between them becoming clear, and looked down at her significantly. Blake met his stare for a moment. He was standing between her and the entrance, a painfully deliberate act which he didn't bother to disguise.

"I already told you. They're just two people I met on the road. It was either join forces with them or be caught by the Grimm or the Fire Nation," Blake said. "It helped that they were decent people… for humans."

Adam stared at her a moment longer, then shrugged and stepped aside. "Whatever you say, darling. But you have a new home now. A proper home. Let me introduce you."

He opened the door, revealing a set of stairs that went down into darkness. Blake pursed her lips and started down the steps, careful not to stumble. Even with her faunus eyes, it was difficult to see where she was going. She supposed that was another measure against intruders – the entirely human Vale Guard would face a lot of trouble if they ever tried to raid the place.

"It's not that far down," Adam said behind her, stopping to lock the door from the inside. "Go on without me. I won't be long."

Blake was far too preoccupied with making sure she didn't fall and break her neck to answer him. A little light would have helped immensely. If only Yang were with her…

She shook her head. Now was not the time to think about Yang. She wasn't sure _when_ the time for that was, but maybe it was best if that question remained unanswered. Blake had enough on her plate as it was.

A couple minutes later, her feet left the steps and landed on a smooth floor. Before her was a metal door, with dim light squeezing under it. Hesitant, Blake grabbed the doorknob and turned it, pushing the door open.

The room before her was not a room at all, but rather like a big empty formation inside the earth. The rocky walls and ceiling were covered by tapestries and torches. She saw bonfires set for cooking and boiling water; a forge where iron weapons were being hammered into form; rows of tents and sleeping bags, kids' toys scattered throughout…

And everywhere, faunus. Working, talking, resting - just plain living. There were so many, Blake could hardly believe what she was seeing.

"Remind you of someplace?" Adam appeared beside her, a hint of a smile on his lips.

"Adam, this is…" Blake paused. It was difficult to find the words. "This is fantastic."

"It is, isn't it?" Adam put a hand on her shoulder and gestured around them. "Welcome to the White Fang, Blake."

* * *

Yang whistled under her breath as she walked through the Middle Ring, headed towards Sun's restaurant to start work for the day. As she went, she turned her face to the sky and closed her eyes, basking in the warmth of the sun. What a pleasant day. She could almost forget…

She started whistling louder. She wasn't doing it because she was happy, of course - because she wasn't. She just needed something to keep her mind distracted, or else she would get lost in thought again, and then the worry would burrow its way in again and that would be it for the day.

It had been a whole week since…

Sighing, Yang opened her eyes and sped up her steps. Turning a corner, she finally arrived at the restaurant. Not lingering at the entrance – markedly empty – she immediately went inside.

There were already a few clients seated, and Sun was taking their orders. Yang went to the back to put on her uniform, and when she returned to the main room, he was done. Yang grimaced as Sun approached her with a concerned look on his face. What she wouldn't do to avoid this conversation…

"Yang!" He stopped in front of her and looked around. "Blake's not with you."

"Yep," Yang said awkwardly. "Unless she's being especially sneaky…"

"This is the fourth day in a row she doesn't show up. I'm starting to get worried, Yang," Sun crossed his arms. "What's going on?"

"I've already told you all I know, Sun." Yang turned away. "She's out with her friend."

"Right. Adam Taurus. The friend who we don't know anything about," Sun huffed. "What exactly are they doing that's so important?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"You live in the same house! Surely, you've talked about it!"

Yang kept her back to him, refusing to answer, mostly because she had no answer. She was as much in the dark as him. Blake had been a rare sight around the house since Adam had shown up, and the few times Yang had seen her, Blake had only graced her with a couple sentences before disappearing again.

That Sun thought it was so obvious that she would know… It hurt immensely, and all that Yang could do about it was steel herself and keep going about her day as if nothing was wrong.

"Look, if you talk to Blake, just tell her I'm not paying for the days she's a no-show. We're friends, but I'm still her boss," Sun said. "Really, I should fire her for leaving us without a guard with no explanation, but whatever. I'm just hoping she's okay."

"Yeah," Yang muttered. "Me too."

"Enough talking!" Sun clapped his hands. "Cheer up! Let's get to work!" he made a ridiculous pose, raising both his arms above his head and bending his knees, while his tail whipped left and right behind him. " _Banana Business_ style!"

Yang made a weak attempt of mimicking him. Even if she had put effort into it, it wouldn't have worked anyway, seeing as she was in severe lack of a tail. Nevertheless, Sun was disappointed.

* * *

"You're impressed, aren't you? Admit it. I took you by surprise."

Blake sat down before a table, needing to take a moment to center herself. From the moment she'd stepped foot inside the hideout, everything had become so surreal, like she had been transported into another world entirely. She had been barely present as Adam introduced her to some key figures of the organization, too lost to make a sensible presentation of herself.

"I… Yeah." Blake blinked a few times, trying to focus. "I can't believe you actually managed… all of this."

"I always said this is what I wanted. What we were doing before was important, Blake, but it wasn't enough. _This_ is the White Fang as it's supposed to be," Adam said, sitting down across from her. "I didn't do it alone, though. There already were a bunch of faunus wanting change before I got here. They just needed _someone_ to come along and get things rolling."

Blake nodded wordlessly. Adam had always had an authoritative presence, even when they were younger. It was often the reason they ended the day alive and well-fed. He had been a bit of a tyrant at times, but even that Blake had come to miss eventually.

"How did you find this place?" Blake asked.

"There's a network of tunnels that runs underneath all of Vale and a bit farther beyond. It's mostly abandoned now. An old king decreed that it was too dangerous to use them, with there being a supposed risk of collapsing parts of the city," Adam shrugged. "But we know that's a lie."

"Is it?" Blake looked up at the ceiling. "It does seem dangerous to mess with the underground with so many people above us."

"The tunnels are completely safe. What the king didn't like was that there were no divisions down here keeping the people where they belong," Adam stated. "There are no Rings in the underground. We can go wherever we wish in the city, and there's no one to stop us. That's the biggest reason why our operations have been a success so far."

Blake could definitely see how that could be useful. She and Yang had had plenty of trouble getting into the Middle Ring the first time, and not only because she was a faunus. If Sun hadn't been with them, they would have never made it through.

"So that explains a lot," Blake said. "But it doesn't explain how you have so many faunus here, and how you keep them fed. Back in the day we struggled with just a dozen kids. How many people are here?"

"More than a hundred, easily," Adam said. "The White Fang's methods have evolved, Blake. We're not just thieves settling for whatever scraps we can find. We have big targets and big returns, and that's while we prepare for our real goal…"

Blake raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"

"I can't tell you just yet." Adam smirked. "You have to earn your place here first. Sorry, but that's the way we things work in the White Fang – even for you, Blake."

Blake looked around. Now that the surprise had passed, she was feeling less and less at ease in this place. She hadn't expected Adam to have changed his thieving ways, but this was… something else.

"The forge," she said. "What do you need so many weapons for?"

"We have a lot of people, and most of them aren't benders. And even the benders can use a weapon to defend themselves with." Adam tapped his own katana. "You think it's a big deal?"

Arming a hundred bitter and victimized faunus was not a concept Blake was comfortable with, but she wasn't sure Adam would appreciate if she voiced that position. "No. I was just curious."

"You weren't." Adam sighed. "Look, Blake. I'm taking an unnecessary risk bringing you in so late. We're just about to get to the real stuff, to really make our impact on the city. The White Fang doesn't _need_ you." He paused. " _But_ … I know how precious – and capable - you are. You could be a great asset to the cause. But only if you're totally on board."

"I can't be on board with something I know barely anything about," Blake said.

"Fair enough." Adam got up. "Let me show you, then. Come with me on an operation tonight. Then you'll be able to make an informed decision."

He offered her a hand. Blake looked at it impassively, while inside her head a great battle raged on. It would be much easier to refuse, go back home to Yang and her father, and to forget all about Adam and his new White Fang…

Unfortunately, Blake wasn't used to taking the easy road. Guilt was a familiar feeling for her, and whatever choice she made now, she knew she would be dealing with plenty of it. She might as well go all the way.

"Okay." Blake took Adam's hand. "What are we doing?"

* * *

"A cheese-sprayed banana with a side of melted cocoa for the lady. And for the gentleman, a double-sized Sage Special - sugar coated."

Yang set the trays down on the table and watched as the couple she served nodded their appreciation. She made a short bow, then walked away from the table, cleaning her uniform of stray delicacies that it had accumulated over the course of the afternoon.

It was a busy work day. The kitchen staff had been working nonstop, and Yang had barely had a minute to breathe between taking orders and delivering them. She'd even caught glimpses of Sun helping out in both departments. She had to admit, as carefree of a guy he could be, Sun's devotion to his restaurant was to be applauded.

Now, if he could only raise her pay a little…

There was little time to rest, as she heard the front doors open and slam against the walls, followed by a shouting voice.

"So this is the place that serves _and_ is run by vermin?!"

Yang's body responded all on its own, her muscles clenching as she spun around to face the new arrivals. "What did you say, you-"

She stopped herself as she recognized the person leading the arrivals, and no doubt who had shouted – Cardin Winchester of the Vale Guard, the guy who had broken her arm and nearly killed Blake, amongst many other faunus… and gotten his just return by Yang's hand. A nasty burn scar covered a great portion of his face now. Yang would have felt sorry for him, had she not known he deserved it.

But this wasn't the moment to feel vindicated. Yang turned away swiftly, hoping he hadn't heard her…

Too late.

"What did _you_ say?" Cardin barked, walking towards her, his troupe following. "Come on, finish that sentence! Or did you not think that far ahead? I wouldn't be surprised, you have to be pretty stupid to qualify for this pigpen!"

And just like that, all care went out the window. Yang turned around to face him again, her eyes burning red. "How about you drop in your resume then, you waste of air? You'll make manager, no sweat!"

Cardin's eyes widened as he recognized her in turn. He stepped back in terror and reached for his face, then seemed to remember he was surrounded by his loyal followers and puffed up his chest.

"It's _you_! The firebender maniac who ruined my face!" he shouted. "What are you doing _here_?"

"Wasting my time listening to you speak." Yang pointed at the door. "Out. Or do you want a repeat of last time?"

"You'd like to try!" Cardin looked around. "I don't see your freak girlfriend. Where's she? Chasing tiger-rats for dinner on the streets?"

Yang took a step forward and raised a fist, an inferno combusting inside her and racing to her fingertips-

"Woah now!" Sun stepped out of the kitchen and put himself between her and Cardin's group. "What's going on over here?"

"This jerk just insulted Blake – and you and your restaurant!" Yang shouted.

" _You're_ the boss?" Cardin looked at Sun and laughed. "Wow, people will eat from anywhere these days!"

"Alright, dude, you're out." Sun said.

"Why should I leave?" Cardin glared at him. "You've got a firebender on hire. One word to my father and your farce of a restaurant goes down! You really wanna turn me away?"

"Go ahead, call daddy dearest," Yang said. "I'll make your pretty faces match."

She made to lunge at him, and Cardin nearly toppled over his companions as he stumbled back. A moment later, he ran out of the restaurant, followed quickly by his troupe. Sun leered at their backs, then turned to Yang when they were finally gone.

"Are you crazy?" he whispered. "You were going to firebend in front of all my clients, Yang! You know how hard it is to keep a profitable business in Vale _without_ the Guard coming after you?"

"Sorry," Yang said, rubbing her arms feverishly. Her blood was still boiling, but she could see the situation much more clearly now. "He just came in acting like a jerk. If I had realized it was him I wouldn't have-"

"Okay. I'm not mad at you. Just be more careful. I can only cover for you so much;" Sun rubbed his forehead tiredly. "And make sure Blake comes back to work, okay? This wouldn't have happened if she had been here to turn him away in the first place."

Yang nodded, and Sun returned to the kitchen.

She looked down at her hands, slowly opening and closing them. It had been no mistake, she had felt it… The call of fire, stronger than ever before. It was like she'd never lost it to begin with. It made no sense.

Or maybe…

* * *

Blake spent the rest of the noon in the White Fang hideout, talking with the faunus housed there and getting to know some of them. For the most part, she wasn't surprised. They were like she expected, faunus hardened by war and prejudice - much like her, she supposed. Although some were harder, having darker ideas and intentions regarding their _human foes_ , Blake found they were outliers.

Or maybe that was what she wanted to believe. Not everyone was so vocal with what they thought. And with who their leader was…

But there was no point in thinking the worst so easily. She had stayed for a reason, and she dearly hoped to be proved wrong about her suspicions.

By nightfall, Adam had finished his preparations, and him and a select group of twelve faunus – plus Blake – set out on their mission. They used the tunnels that expanded from the base, lighting the way with portable torches, and Blake soon lost her sense of direction when they began to take turns upon turns in a system that was neither uniform nor properly mapped out.

Eventually, they came upon a spiraling slope which they climbed for a few minutes, and exited into open air. Blake looked around. They were in a seemingly deserted area, with tall grass reaching to their hips and tiny insects zooming around them. They were in the shadows, but a little further ahead was a road illuminated by torch posts. Following the stretch of the road, Blake's eyes finally fell on a rock-and-steel gate.

"That's the gate to the Upper Ring," Adam whispered behind her. "Our target's gonna come from there. We'll strike once it's far enough that the guards won't see us." He handed her something. "Put this on. We don't wanna be recognized."

Blake looked at the object she had been given and found a mask meant to hide the upper half of her face. Looking around, she realized everyone else was already masked, except theirs covered their entire faces.

"Why is my mask like yours?" Blake whispered, getting even more paranoid than she already was.

"I told you, you're precious," Adam said, his voice taking on a slow drawl. "Shh. They're coming."

Blake bit her tongue, refraining from speaking out as everyone started to sneak through the tall grass towards the road. If ever there was a chance to back out, it was now. But Blake pressed on, grasping her thighs to keep her hands from shaking.

The wagon came into view, turning around a corner and entering the light of the torches. It was being pulled by a bear-mole, a leather harness fixed around its torso and neck. The conductor was a human man who seemed about ready to roll onto his side and sleep.

"The lights!"

With a flick of his arm, Adam raised a small boulder from the earth and launched at a torch post, knocking it over and extinguishing its flames. Two of their companions followed suit, taking care of the two remaining posts, and suddenly the road was pitch dark. It was no problem for the faunus, of course, but the conductor pulled the rains, stopping the bear-mole and the wagon.

"Now!"

The White Fang ran out of the grass and onto the road, flashing swords and nocked arrows, and positioned themselves around the wagon. Blake followed, but didn't unsheathe her sword, choosing to keep her hand on the grip and leave it at that.

"What in the name of…?" The conductor leaned forward, trying to peer through the darkness. "What's going on here?!"

"Don't move!" Adam barked. The conductor yelled and nearly fell over. "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay right where you are! Don't move a muscle, or you'll get an arrow through your fat belly!"

"O-okay! J-just take everything, please, i-it's all in the back!"

Adam looked at four of the group and nodded. They went to the back of the van and climbed in, then started taking out boxes full of food and carrying them back towards the tunnel.

"L-listen, I don't w-want any trouble," the conductor said, shaking in his seat. "Can I p-please just-"

"You are moving _several_ muscles right now," Adam warned. "Do I need to repeat myself?"

"I-I'm sorry, just – my boy is with me, if you c-could just let him-"

"Shut. _UP_!"

The conductor jumped in his seat and inadvertently brought the reins snapping down on the bear-mole's back. Startled, the animal screamed and rose onto its hind paws, then set out into a full sprint forward. Adam shoved Blake out of the way, then jumped aside himself, and the wagon came speeding past them.

The bear-mole turned around abruptly, causing the wagon to fall on its side and explode into pieces. Wood, vegetables and meat went flying everywhere. Freed, the bear-mole charged back at the White Fang, its jaw open wide to bite.

An arrow pierced into its left shoulder, causing it to falter and slide the rest of the way. Blake brought her ribbon out, prepared to subdue the beast – but Adam was faster, carrying himself forward in a miniature rock wave, and cut across the bear-mole's back. It collapsed entirely, and after a long whine, ceased to move.

"Adam!" Blake shouted, enraged by the sight. "You didn't have to-"

"Get back here, you worthless idiot!" Adam barked, ignoring her entirely as he marched towards the debris of the wagon and the conductor, who was crawling not away, but back through the debris. "Don't even try to run!"

"He's not running, Adam!" Blake ran to join Adam, unsheathing her sword.

Adam caught the conductor by the back of his shirt and dragged him away from the wagon, then dropped him on the road. Blake started reaching for Adam's arm, but a sound distracted her, and she looked back at the debris.

A little hand was sticking out, begging for help. Barely thinking, Blake raced to it and grabbed the hand. She pulled, and a little boy came stumbling out of the debris. Blake tried to grab hold of him to make sure he was unharmed, but he took one look at her and screamed, then ran towards the conductor.

"Your boy, huh?" Adam swung his katana around, bringing it just under the conductor's chin. "Now why would you bring a child on such a dangerous job?"

"It's n-not – _please_ , just let us go…" the conductor pleaded.

"I don't know… The cargo's destroyed now. We'll be bringing almost nothing back home," Adam said. "You ruined everything. Why should I let you go?"

" _Adam_."

Adam looked at Blake for a moment, then shrugged and withdrew his sword.

"You can still be useful," he said, looking at the conductor. "This is what's gonna happen: your boy is gonna count to one hundred, and when he's done, you two are going to run back to the guards and tell them the faunus of the White Fang did this. Got it?"

Trembling, the conductor nodded. Adam sheathed his katana, then walked back into the grass, gesturing for everyone to follow. Blake hesitated for a moment, shooting an apologetic look at the conductor and his son, then went after the group.

Once they were back in the tunnel, Blake rushed ahead and grabbed Adam by the arm, spinning him around to face her.

"Adam, what the hell was that?" she asked, restraining from punching him in the nose.

"Things went bad fast. I had to make do with what we had," Adam said matter-of-factly. "I wasn't going to _kill_ him, Blake. The goal was just to scare, and I think I did that exceedingly well." He took off her mask, which she hadn't even realized she was still wearing, and smiled softly. "I'm sorry I caught you off-guard. But now you know how we work. And I promise you – what happened tonight is as far as the White Fang will ever go."

Somehow, that response did nothing to calm her down.

* * *

"Dad!" Yang called as she entered the house through the front door. "Are you here?"

"Kitchen!"

Yang went to the kitchen and found her father cooking something on the stove. The smell was delicious, but she way too pumped-up to care and look what it was.

"Is Blake here?" she asked.

"Nope. Unless she snuck in, but I have dad-ears, and dad-ears miss nothing," Taiyang said. "Why do you ask?"

"Doesn't matter, just warn me if she shows up," Yang replied, exiting the kitchen partway through her sentence. "I'll be working out upstairs!"

"Please don't break any more dummies!" he shouted after her.

"No promises!"

She raced up the stairs and almost slammed the training room's door off its hinges in her haste to get in. She kicked the door shut behind her, then took a wooden dummy from the wall and set it near the center of the room.

Her heart was drumming in her ears. As she stopped to stand before the dummy, Yang closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. She was certain she had found the way, but being overexcited about it would only hinder her. For it to work, she needed to be calm, certain, and true to herself.

The first time she had firebended again had been when they were sneaking the refugees inside the city and the Guard had shown up to stop them. The faunus had been put into mortal danger, Blake amongst them. But Yang had somehow lit her fist on fire just briefly enough to punch Cardin Winchester across the face and save the day.

She had thought that had been just a fluke, a heat-of-the-moment kind of thing, because a month and more passed without even the slightest bending happening, despite all her efforts. Until a couple weeks ago, after her so-called date with Blake. She hadn't realized it at the time, but that night, the fire inside her had returned – only to have disappeared the next morning.

And today, Cardin had shown up again, and he had insulted Blake. And just like that…

"Heh."

It was almost too silly to be real. There was probably a better explanation, but even if that was the case, Yang didn't care to find out. Her rationalization was good enough already. She wanted to believe, and wasn't that the crux of the issue?

"Here goes nothing…"

In her mind's eye, she recalled Blake, and not only the image of her, but everything Yang saw in her.

Blake was primarily a mystery. She was as guarded as a person could be, and Yang didn't blame her for it. Life had been tremendously tough on her, and no matter where she went, there seemed be no place for Blake where she could be truly at peace.

But despite all that, Blake had turned into a pretty good person. Marvelous even, Yang would dare say. Beneath her somber exterior was a warmth and purity that would be difficult to find in anyone else.

Yang and Blake were as different as day and night. War had brought them together – war, and the need to chase after something dear to them. Yang wondered if she'd have paid Blake any mind had they met under any other circumstances. She felt guilty about not having an answer, because she was pretty sure Blake would have given her a chance no matter what.

That was just the kind of person Blake was. She would take on the world for the right cause or person. And that…

That was someone very worth fighting for.

Yang thrust her right hand out, and a wave of electrifying energy surged through her. It was like being born again, power igniting inside like never before, and with an unbreakable meaning driving it outward.

She opened her eyes, and all that remained of the training dummy was a little mount of ash.

* * *

When she saw the house, Blake nearly turned around and left. Her stomach felt like lead as she climbed up the hill and then up the steps to the porch. Her hand hovered in the air in front of the door, trembling so bad she couldn't knock.

How could she show up here after everything? After being gone for a week and not saying a word to explain it? Not only that, but the shame and the disgust welling up inside her, threatening to overflow… Going inside and facing them would feel like the greatest betrayal. It would be best to be remembered as the person they had known her as, and not… whatever she was now.

But that was the easy road, and Blake wasn't used to taking it.

Taking a shaky breath, she turned the doorknob and went inside. A sweet aroma immediately filled her nostrils, but it was far from pleasant as her stomach turned violently. Blake stumbled a little, closing the door behind her and pressing her back to it.

"Blake!"

Yang came out of the kitchen, and upon seeing her, smiled from ear to ear. Blake didn't have the chance to say anything before she was suddenly wrapped in a bear-hug and dragged further into the house. It was almost enough to make Blake feel better.

…and since when was Yang so warm?

"Blake, I have the greatest news!" Yang exclaimed.

"O-okay," Blake mumbled. "But before-"

"I can firebend again! And I'm stronger than ever!"

Yang jumped back and conjured a large fireball between her hands. Blake just stared at it, not knowing what else to do. It was certainly good news, but in the state she was in, she was entirely numb to it.

"So?" Yang extinguished the fire and leaned forward expectantly. "Aren't congratulations in order?"

"That's… that's great. I'm happy for you," Blake said slowly. "Just…"

"Wow. I thought you'd be more excited than that, even with you being you," Yang said. "I mean, it's because of you that I recovered, so…"

Blake tilted her head in confusion. Yang looked towards the kitchen, then grabbed Blake by the wrist and dragged her out the house.

Blake had thought nothing could make the situation worse, but being alone in the porch with Yang did the job. The silence was almost eerie, and the only light came from inside the house, leaving them mostly in the dark.

"So… there's no easy way to say this, so I'll try to just tell it to you straight." Yang looked aside and snorted. "Or _not_ straight." She looked back at Blake, a little red tinging her cheeks. "Anyway. Dad says every bender has a particular source from where they draw their power. It can be a feeling like anger or sorrow, or something much more abstract. Like, I don't know, you could really like collecting seashells, and that's the source of your whatever-bending. Are you following me?"

"Yes?" Blake replied hesitantly. She didn't see the point in anything Yang was saying, and was just hoping it ended quickly so she could say what she needed to say and be done with it.

"Okay! So, like, I lost my source of firebending when I confronted my mother, and now I've found a new one…" Yang paused. "And it's… well… _you_."

"…Huh?" Blake blinked. "How can I be _anyone's_ source of bending?"

"Okay, not _you_ as in, your existing self, with your voice and body and pretty hair and eyes. More like the _idea_ of you? _My_ idea of you. If that makes any sense. Obviously I can't know, like, the _essence_ of who you are or anything like that, but-"

"Yang, you're rambling."

"Basically – I can firebend again because you're the best and I love you."

Yang covered her mouth, like she couldn't believe what she had just said. Likewise, it took a moment for Blake to process it too.

Her first reaction was of triumph. After all, she'd been hoping for this to happen for a long time now. She had been happy enough being friends with Yang, but something more? Being with the most wonderful girl she'd ever met? She'd give anything for that - anything.

But the feeling didn't last, imploding and giving way to a wave of despair and misery that nearly drove her to her knees. Now? _Now_? She'd give anything for this to not be happening - anything.

"Sorry. I-I did say I didn't know how to approach this…" Yang said awkwardly. She'd recovered somewhat from her shame, and was now looking at Blake with such obvious anticipation, it was almost funny. "It's okay if you need a little time…"

"Yang, no," Blake said brusquely. She knew she should be picking her words and tone more thoughtfully, but her mind was such a jumble it was a miracle she was even responding at all. "I'm flattered, but no."

"No? O-okay, but… why?" Yang bit her lip, and Blake refused to look up at her eyes in fear of what she'd find there. "Is it me? Or are you not into…? It's okay if you aren't, it's just… We did have that date, and you _looked like_ you were into me then? I could be totally mistaken, Dad did set all that up, but still-"

"No! Stop. It's not anything like that," Blake said. "Just stop."

"I'm not insisting – it's okay if you don't want anything like that with me! – I'm just really confused. I'll drop this if you want me to, but I just need you to know that I really do think you're the best and I do love you, even if it's kinda early to say that, and nothing would make me happier than-"

" _STOP!_ "

Blake slammed her arm against the porch railing. Yang stared at her with wide eyes, little embers flickering around her fingertips.

For what felt like an eternity, they just stood there, looking at each other as if they could disappear in the blink of an eye.

Then slowly, Blake lowered her arm and stepped very close to Yang. "I don't know who you think I am, but I promise you, I am not this perfect person that can bring your firebending back. You don't know the things I've done, and if you did, you'd hate me as much as you hate your mother." She paused. "I'm sorry I wasn't honest with you. You deserve better."

"I don't understand," Yang said. "Blake, if you could just explain…"

"Just forget about me, okay?" Blake stepped back. "I mean it, Yang. Don't come looking. You're better off without me."

"Blake!"

Ignoring Yang's cry, Blake turned around and ran, ran, ran, _ran_ , and never looked back.

* * *

Taiyang hated this. He'd had plenty grief bringing up his daughter, probably more than the average father did, but this particular issue was one he'd thought he'd been lucky enough to avoid. Yang had had some ventures into romance in the past, but she had always been very independent about it, and however things ended, Taiyang had never heard the tiniest complaint from her.

Which only made it more heartbreaking to hold her as she cried her heart out. He wished there was something more he could do than sit on the sofa and let her rest on his lap, but that was it. There were no wise sayings to fix everything this time – not that those worked even half the time, but placeboes were better than nothing, in most situations.

Occasionally, however, there was a break between sobs and she would say something, and that was when he had the chance to lighten things up. A joke here, a sly tickle there. She hated him for it, of course, but as long as it made her feel better, it was worth it.

"Stupid," Yang mumbled.

"Stupid? Who, me?" he asked. "Frankly, that's a little uncalled for. I just wanna be a good dad."

"No! I'm stupid." Yang tried to elbow him, but she couldn't be bothered to put enough effort into it and gave up halfway through. "Really stupid. I'm like the Stupid Queen."

"The banished princess of the Stupid Nation, more accurately," Taiyang said. "I don't think you're stupid. Why do you?"

"Because! I just am!" Yang whined. "I don't ever _listen_ , Dad. If I would just listen to people, we wouldn't get into half the trouble we get in. Maybe if I took some time to think of anyone but myself and what _I_ want and what _I_ need, then maybe… _maybe_ …"

She buried her head in his chest and sobbed. Taiyang sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"You're not that self-absorbed, Yang. Not any more than most people, anyway," he said. "You can't blame yourself for being oblivious to stuff you have no business knowing."

"But I can! If I'd just _talked_ to Blake like a sensible person before this whole mess, if I had focused on helping her instead of myself, maybe she wouldn't have felt like I hated her or-"

"Ah, shut up, you. She doesn't hate you, and you can't control her actions." Taiyang rolled his eyes. As sorry as he felt for Yang, she was also being a tad _too_ irrational. It would make for good teasing material for later, at least. "Blake's a complicated person. Whatever made her do what she did, that's on her."

"Yeah, I guess." Yang pouted. "She's the Stupid Queen from the Stupid Nation."

Taiyang nodded solemnly. He liked Blake and in no way believed she was a bad person, so he felt a little bad for throwing all this blame on her, but one of those girls was his daughter, and she always took precedence.

"I am pretty stupid, though." Yang rolled around to look at him. "I don't even know what I want half the time. It's like every day I'm chasing something new. First it's capturing Ruby, then it's stopping Torchwick, then fighting the Fire Nation – and running away – and confronting Mom – and running away again! – and getting my firebending back – then being with Blake – but my firebending! – Blake! – firebending! – Blake!" She sighed. "I can't _focus_ on anything. It's like I have this… fire raging inside me, but I can't direct it anywhere."

"Well then, maybe instead of moping and torturing yourself over stuff you can't change, you should work on fixing that problem," Taiyang said. "I shudder to think what damage a Yang Xiao Long with actual conviction could unleash upon Remnant."

Yang furrowed her brow. "Is that a compliment or an insult?"

"It's… both."

Yang chuckled, and the sound of it almost made Taiyang cry tears of joy.

"Dad… You're the only person who's always stood by my side, even when I didn't deserve it. I would be lost without you." She bit her lip. "Swear to me…"

Taiyang looked down at her. She looked so serious all of a sudden, it was frightening.

"Swear you won't abandon me too."

* * *

As promised, Blake found Adam waiting beside the hideout entrance, wiping his sword with a red-drenched rag. When he saw her, a smirk took form on his face. She hated it, but didn't let it show.

"You came back after all," he said. "Am I to take that as your final decision?"

Blake could refuse. She couldn't go back to Yang, but there was nothing stopping her from living on her own. She had managed by herself before. She could even leave Vale if she wanted and try her luck somewhere else. And if things didn't ultimately work out, there _was_ a hearth that was always waiting for her…

"Yes. We have a mission, don't we?"

But Blake wasn't going to take that road.


	37. Playing with Fire

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Seventeen: Playing with Fire**

* * *

Sometimes, Ruby got really overwhelmed by how lucky she was. Sitting around the kitchen table with her friends, enjoying a wonderful breakfast made by the Queen's personal staff, while outside the sun cast a gentle glow through a thin layer of clouds… This was one of those times.

She _was_ lucky. These occasions had become rather uncommon lately, and though everyone regretted it, they couldn't do anything about it short of ignoring the duties they had in Vale. Ruby in particular felt like she was busy all the time. Between attending war meetings, practicing water and earthbending, and dealing with the ever-present threat of Grimm in the city and its vicinity, she hardly ever had a moment for herself.

But not today! Today, she had no meetings in the palace; no Grimm to slay; and so far, neither Weiss nor Pyrrha had said anything about training. It was a day full of possibilities, and she intended to make the best of it! It would the best. Day. Ev-

"Ruby, could you stop grinning like a madwoman for a moment and pass me the salt?" Weiss asked.

Ruby blinked, caught completely off-guard. Blushing a little in embarrassment, she slid the salt over to Weiss, then sunk a little in her seat and put a whole cabbage leaf inside her mouth. She couldn't talk if she was eating, and if she wasn't talking, she wouldn't look like a weirdo. A flawless plan!

"…You know people usually eat those in portions, yes?" Weiss stared down at her in simultaneous wonder and exasperation. Sticking to her plan, Ruby swallowed the cabbage leaf whole and replaced it with another from her plate. "You have a _knife_." Starting to panic, Ruby took a whole tomato in her hand and brought it towards her mouth, only for Weiss to grab her wrist and pry the vegetable from her hold. "Honestly, Ruby, you're so weird sometimes."

Dismayed, Ruby sunk even further down her seat. Weiss pulled her back up, then put the tomato down in her own plate and started cutting it with her knife, all the while casting sideway looks at Ruby, prepared to stop the next shenanigan in the blink of an eye.

"What were you smiling about anyway, Ruby?" Jaune asked, almost all his face covered in bread crumbs. Really, how had those gotten in his ears, of all places? "You're not planning to conquer the world or anything, are you?"

"Nope! Not today," Ruby said, forgetting at once how embarrassed she was and getting excited again. "I was just thinking about how to spend the day. Everyone's here for once – we could do so much fun stuff!"

"Oh yeah, that's true. I'm down for anything!" Jaune nodded enthusiastically. "I've been cooped up in here so long while you guys are doing important stuff, I'm just glad to – Pyrrha, what are you doing?"

Pyrrha froze, leaning towards him with a napkin in hand. She looked at Ruby and Weiss nervously for a moment before facing him again. "You've, uh… you've got breadcrumbs all over you. Not to mention the juice from the tomatoes and, uh, I think mustard too…" She smiled tentatively. "I was going to clean you up!"

"Oh, okay. Sorry, my mom always said I ate like a pig. She used to clean me up all the time too." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously. "You really remind me of her sometimes, Pyrrha!"

Weiss lost control of her knife and bounced it off her plate. Jaune turned to look at her, worried that she might have hurt herself, only to recoil at the livid expression on her face.

"W-what?" he asked. "Please don't stab me, Weiss!"

"You…" Weiss took a deep breath to compose herself. Grabbing her knife again, she went back to cutting through the tomato diligently. "Nothing. Pyrrha, let the pig clean himself."

Pyrrha handed the napkin over to Jaune with a blank look on her face. He looked at her weirdly, then shrugged and started to wipe his mouth. "Thanks. I don't know what Weiss' going on about, I'm just glad you're such a great friend, Pyrrha."

"Don't… mention it…" Pyrrha looked at the bread basket, heavily tempted to bury her head inside it and never come back out.

Luckily, Ruby and Weiss were rescued from witnessing Pyrrha's moment of misery by a new arrival. Cinder came back to the kitchen table and set down another tray, having gone to make some tea for everyone.

"Did I miss something?" the firebender asked, looking around the table curiously.

"Ruby doesn't know how to eat, and Jaune is a hopeless slob," Weiss replied matter-of-factly. "Is that jasmine?"

"Good nose," Cinder said, pouring some tea into a cup and handing it over to Weiss. "There's also valeberry."

"Valeberry?" Weiss frowned. "I've never heard of it."

"It's a local plant," Cinder grinned. "Please hold your gasps of surprise. Ruby, would you like some tea too?"

"Yeah, I wanna try this valeberry thing!"

Cinder nodded and poured the requested tea into another cup. She started handing it over to Ruby, but took it back just as the airbender was about to grasp it.

"Sorry," Cinder said quietly. "I think it went a little cold."

She enveloped the cup with her hands and closed her eyes. A few seconds later, steam started to rise from the tea, then she finally handed it over to Ruby, who nearly dropped it, so hot it was.

"Sorry. I should have warned you," Cinder apologized.

"It's no problem." Ruby smiled at her, and as her fingers grew used to the heat of the cup, an idea suddenly sprang into mind. "Cinder! Teach me firebending!"

Once again, Weiss lost control of her knife. This time, it actually flew out of her grip and embedded itself into the wall just beside Jaune's head. Jaune stopped wiping his ear to look at the knife, and a couple seconds too late, jumped to the floor.

"Ruby!" Weiss hissed. "You can't just _say_ stuff like that!"

"I can't? Why?" Ruby asked, honestly confused by Weiss' reaction. "I'm just asking Cinder to teach me firebending. What's the big deal?"

"You don't just ask someone like that!" Weiss exclaimed. "Certainly not over breakfast!"

"Cinder doesn't seem offended," Ruby shrugged. "Are you offended, Cinder?"

"Not at all," Cinder said. "A little surprised, perhaps."

"Still! Ruby, you already have your hands full with waterbending and earthbending!" Weiss insisted. "It's hard enough to teach you, and you want to add firebending into the mix?"

"She will have to learn firebending eventually, Weiss…" Pyrrha said. "I don't see anything wrong with starting now. If things get difficult, we'll find a way to manage."

Weiss crossed her arms, not looking happy in the slightest. She cast a cutting glance at Cinder, then sighed heavily. " _Fine_."

"Yay!" Ruby squealed, giving Weiss a quick hug. The princess softened up a little, but otherwise refused to acknowledge her and just took a sip of her jasmine tea.

Ruby hopped over to Cinder's side, looking up at her with big, pleading eyes. Cinder stopped pouring tea for herself, her lips parting in a knowing smile.

"You want to start now."

Ruby nodded, too excited to form proper words.

"Then we shall do as you wish… my pupil."

* * *

Ruby sat down on the rocky ground and shifted around uncomfortably, making sure she wasn't sitting on her cloak. Ever since her mysterious benefactor had gifted it back to her brand-new, she had been taking extra care that it didn't get damaged again. It was bound to happen eventually, of course, but she wasn't going to let that be because she had been careless.

Cinder sat closely in front of her, her legs crossed under her in a way Ruby thought was rather un-Cinder-like. The firebender wasn't exactly a jumpy sort of person, but she was always ready to fight or run, or so it appeared to Ruby. The way she was now, she was left wide open. Ruby wondered if that was somehow part of the lesson.

"This place will suffice," Cinder said, looking around leisurely. "No strangers to cause us trouble. Wide space, the wind is mild… No risk of you burning down the house."

"You mean _us_ burning down the house?" Ruby asked, chuckling to herself.

"No. I meant _you_." Cinder set such a severe stare on her, Ruby immediately regretted opening her mouth. "Before we get started, let me establish some rules. I don't know how Weiss and Pyrrha teach you, and I couldn't care less. My method is simple. I give you directions, you follow them. If you have difficulty with anything, speak. Otherwise, don't." She paused. "Fire is the most dangerous element. You'd do well to remember that."

Ruby nodded, a little daunted by Cinder's straight-forwardness, though she was still rather excited by the prospect of learning firebending. Besides, she had no reason to doubt Cinder's ability as a teacher.

"Excuse me, but isn't that a tad too… _strict_?"

Ruby groaned and covered her face with her hands. Cinder turned to look at Weiss, standing a little away from them with a stern expression on her face. There was a bucket filled to the brim with water just beside her, which she was constantly moving about with a swirling motion of a finger.

"You may call it that, if you wish," Cinder said, with nothing but patience in her voice. "But I assure you, I won't force Ruby to do anything she doesn't want to do. This is for her benefit, after all."

"Hmm. You can have your way, but I should warn you…" Weiss raised her chin haughtily. "Ruby doesn't respond well to orders. If you don't allow her room to breathe, you'll find your time might be utterly wasted…"

"Well…" Cinder smiled at her. "She doesn't seem to be gasping for air at the moment."

Weiss bristled, but didn't say anything more. She sat down on the ground and dragged her bucket even closer to her, taking a hand-sized sphere of water from it to float above her knees.

"Weiss, you don't _have_ to be here, you know?" Ruby said, trying to hide how embarrassed she was. What was she, the Avatar, or a baby that needed constant watching?

"Forgive me if I'm a little hesitant to leave you alone while you juggle orbs of flames for the first time." Weiss shaped the water into a miniature whip and snapped it, then let it fall back into the bucket.

"But I'm not alone!" Ruby protested. "I have Cinder."

"Even so. Fire is the most dangerous element." Weiss shot a pointed look at Cinder. "Right?"

"Let her be, Ruby. She's not wrong to worry," Cinder said. "It's good to have a healer on hand in case something goes wrong. Nothing _will_ go wrong, of course, but…" Ger voice dropped to a whisper. "…anything to ease her mind, yeah?"

Ruby nodded. It was better to have Weiss watch for a while than have her complaining all week long about _the dangers of firebending_. And though she had been hoping to spend some time alone with Cinder for once, she could never really be bothered by Weiss' presence.

"Are we all settled?" Cinder asked, glancing at Weiss, whose only reply was to tap her bucket with a finger and raise an eyebrow. "Then let's get started."

"Oooh!" Ruby perked up. "Do I get to make a fireball?!"

Cinder leaned sideways, reaching for a patch of green near her. She plucked a blade of grass from the ground, then righted herself and handed it over. Ruby couldn't have been more confused.

"So… not a fireball?"

"Ruby, what were the rules?" Cinder questioned with a hard edge of authority in her voice.

"R-right." Ruby gulped. "Go on."

"You won't be producing a flame of your own just yet. I know you've had some success doing that in the past, but that was under extraordinary circumstances," Cinder said. "First you must learn to control heat, which is the fundamental force of firebending. Without a strong grasp of that, your fire will be as likely to help as to harm you."

Cinder extended a finger and touched it to the blade. Ruby felt a little heat, then saw a hole started to form in the spot she'd touched.

"Keep the flames from consuming the grass," Cinder instructed. "Breathe in and out regularly. Focus on the heat. But don't concentrate too hard, or you'll put it out entirely."

Ruby did as she was told, the effort coming naturally to her. Whether it was because of her past lives, or because she'd firebended a bit before, or both, she didn't know. But she kept control almost perfectly, the hole in the grass only barely growing…

Really, she didn't even need to concentrate fully. She didn't say it out loud, but the lesson seemed kind of unnecessary, not to mention boring. Was all of Cinder's teaching going to be like this? Maybe it was good that Weiss was here, for entertainment's sake if nothing else…

"Good work. That's splendid control, Ruby. Now, brace yourself," Cinder said. "Let's have that fireball you wanted."

Cinder snapped her fingers, and suddenly the blade of grass was consumed by fire. Ruby gasped, the flames nearly touching her nose, but she honed in on the raging heat – and shrank the fire into a nice, round sphere between her hands.

"See?" Cinder smirked. "Control is important."

Ruby sighed in relief, then raised the fire before her eyes and smiled. It was so warm and lively, and it was all hers…

"That was a little reckless!" Weiss remarked, having jumped to her feet at the sudden explosion. She'd kicked her bucket, and now its content was rapidly spilling across the ground.

"Trust me, I had it perfectly under control," Cinder said. "But do stay alert. This won't be the last surprise of the day."

Lips pursed, Weiss sat down again and started pulling the water back into the bucket. Cinder looked back at Ruby and rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. Ruby had to hold back her laughter.

Today was going to be fun.

* * *

Weiss was feeling fine. There was, after all, no reason for her to feel otherwise. Sure, she wasn't sitting comfortably on the ground watching Ruby and Cinder, and she still had to fight her nerves to not get up every time they released any particularly large flame… but she was fine.

She was, without the shadow of a doubt, okay with what was going in front of her.

"Now hold out your hand, and make sure you don't lose your fire," Cinder said, and Ruby obeyed her soundlessly, extending a hand towards her with a fireball crackling above it. "Now make it smaller."

Ruby nodded, and after a tempestuous flicker, the fireball shrank to half its original size. Cinder shook her head.

"Not that way. You may have shrunk it, but you did so by sacrificing a lot of heat." Cinder conjured a new flame and merged it with Ruby's, refueling it and making it even bigger than before. "The key is to keep a tight hold on the heat and condense it all into a smaller point. Think of it like one of your airbending techniques – you can make an all-encompassing rush of air, or you can funnel that air into a narrower, harder-hitting form."

Ruby looked down at the fireball and brought her other hand up to cup around it. A drop of sweat rolled down her forehead as she concentrated. Weiss watched anxiously and, though she was ashamed to admit it, with some hope that Ruby was going to fail for the first time since they'd started the session.

But the attempt was flawless. The fireball shrank steadily, the oranges and reds of it becoming even brighter. Ruby's face flushed against the intense heat, and she held it a little further from her.

"Like that?" she asked, looking up at Cinder expectantly.

"Yes. That was perfect," Cinder said. "Can you expand it?"

It took Ruby only a few seconds and little visual effort, and the fireball returned to its former size. Ruby squealed happily, and the fire responded to it by flaring up well above her head. With a desperate wave of her hands, she bended it back down, then smiled innocently at Cinder.

The firebender's lips twitched. "Excellent. Controlling heat is the first thing you should master. With that art perfected, you can will fire to do anything - the only limitations being your power, dexterity, and most importantly, creativity."

"I'm very creative!" Ruby exclaimed eagerly.

"Yes. But you still need direction. You shouldn't begin experimenting alone just yet," Cinder said. "For now, we will work on properly generating your own fire, and then we can get to the fun stuff."

"Fun stuff? Like throwing fireballs?"

"And much more."

Ruby looked so happy, Cinder might as well have told her she had won a lifetime supply of chocolate cookies. She turned to look at Weiss and flashed her two thumbs-up. Not only was she so excited for what came next, she was happy her oldest teacher was there to witness it.

A small part of Weiss couldn't be prouder, but the rest of her was a jumbled mess of emotions, most of which she wasn't pleased at all to recognize within herself. Conjuring the best smile she could, which was unusually hard despite her extensive training, Weiss got up, leaving her bucket where it was, and made a small bow to Ruby and Cinder.

"I think I'll be going now," she said. "The sun will be setting soon, and I don't trust Pyrrha to not let Jaune make his meat soup and infect the whole house with the smell again."

"Now? Can't you stay a little longer?" Ruby asked, her smile fading. "We were just getting to the cool part."

"I've interrupted your training enough for one day. This will… not happen again, I promise," Weiss said. "I apologize for my meddling, Cinder. I wouldn't like it if you intruded on my lessons either."

"As long as Ruby doesn't mind, I don't either." Cinder joined her hands behind her back, a little smile on her lips. "But thank you for the consideration."

Weiss couldn't tell if Cinder was being polite or sending her a sly message. The latter possibility almost made her stay, but then she decided that, whatever the case was, it was probably best that she leave anyway.

"Well, have fun, you two. But please be careful." She hesitated. "And don't stay out too late."

"I'll get Ruby home safely," Cinder promised.

Weiss looked at Ruby's disappointed face, then turned around hastily and walked away.

* * *

The flame wavered above Ruby's palm, dwindling momentarily as it was caught in a slight breeze, before flaring back to form. She didn't take her eyes off of it for an instant, knowing that the briefest distraction could mean losing her hold entirely – and with how hard it had been to conjure the fire in the first place, Ruby wasn't keen on starting over anytime soon.

The difficulty she'd had was weird, and she knew it wasn't just her thinking it, because Cinder had looked puzzled too as she watched over her many attempts. Ruby had failed the few times she'd tried to firebend in the past, so perhaps it shouldn't come as a surprise that she was having trouble now, but even so… she'd been doing excellently so far.

Yet all of a sudden, she was a wreck. No matter how hard she listened to Cinder and how much effort she put into following her instructions, she could only barely follow. It was like the fire was actively fighting against her.

What was wrong with her?

"That's enough for now, Ruby," Cinder said suddenly. "You can let go."

It was almost sad how easy it was to follow _that_ order. Ruby barely had to think – she blinked, and the fire was gone. She nearly fell to her knees, so embarrassed she was.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, bowing her head to avoid facing Cinder.

"Don't be," Cinder said. "You did the best you could."

"I wasted your time." Ruby swallowed dry. "You must be so disappointed. I-it's okay if you don't wanna teach me anymore. I'll understand…"

"Do you take me for someone that would give up that easily?" Cinder clucked her tongue. "Or maybe you think I have such an ego that I cannot bear my teaching to be anything less than perfect…"

"T-that's not it! You did great, I just…" Ruby sighed. "I'm hopeless."

Suddenly, she felt her head being hoisted up by her chin, so that she couldn't be helped but to lock eyes with Cinder. There was something in the firebender's stare, a quality Ruby couldn't hope to comprehend. All she knew was that, despite everything, the one thing Cinder didn't feel at that moment was disappointment in her.

"If you continue to act so miserable because of one small setback… then I _will_ stop teaching you."

The threat, Ruby knew, was very much real. She nodded slowly, deciding that Cinder was right – there was no use in feeling sorry for herself. All she could do was try harder and harder, for as long as it took, for even the slightest improvement.

"Good. Let's rest for a bit before heading back home," Cinder said, stepping back. "Weiss would kill me if you collapsed from exhaustion on the way there."

She sat on the ground leisurely, and a moment later, Ruby followed, feeling a little anxious again. "You don't think she was mad at us, right?"

"Oh, she was definitely mad. Not at you, and not entirely at me either." A slight smile graced Cinder's lips. "But she was mad, no doubt."

"What? I don't get what you're saying, Cinder." Ruby frowned. "Is this another lesson?"

"Weiss is a complicated person. Most everyone is complicated – if you want to take a lesson from my words, let that be it," Cinder said. "I can't say I understand her completely, but I'd wager she felt somewhat… threatened."

"Threatened?" Ruby repeated, growing frustrated with the conversation. "Cinder, I really am not understanding half the stuff you're saying. Weiss was feeling threatened? By what?"

"Well, after Jaune, Weiss was the first friend you made, yes? And you are close to her in a… different way than him. As your teacher, she's a guiding force in your life – and she's very aware of that," Cinder said.

"Okay. I think I see what you're getting at." Ruby crossed her arms, deep in thought. "But Weiss wasn't bothered at all when Pyrrha started teaching me. She was very happy about it, actually. I don't see why it would be any different now."

"I am hardly like Pyrrha," Cinder said. She paused, as if considering her next words very carefully. "Just put yourself in Weiss' shoes. How do you think she felt watching us before?"

"I don't have a clue! That's why I asked you in the first place, but you've only made things even more confusing!" Ruby exclaimed, throwing her hands up.

Cinder chuckled, and that was all the answer Ruby got from her. Perhaps that was for the best – Ruby had a feeling she would only get more frustrated if they continued on the topic.

"Don't worry about it, okay?" Cinder said. "Complicated feelings aside, Weiss was very impressed by your firebending. And at the end of the day, isn't that what you _really_ care about?"

"W-what?" Ruby blurted out, turning beet red. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Yes, you do, and you won't fool me with your little clueless act." Cinder smiled deviously. "You're head over heels for her, and it's so painfully obvious, she _has_ to be willfully ignoring it."

"That's not true!" Ruby shouted.

"It's not?" Cinder blinked innocently. "So she _isn't_ willfully ignoring it?"

"That's not what I meant, Cinder, and you know it!" Ruby hissed angrily. "I _don't_ like Weiss. Okay?"

Cinder hung back nonchalantly and cast an amused look at her. "Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?"

Ruby clutched the edges of her cloak, shaking all of a sudden. She tried to focus her anger on Cinder, but that didn't work for long, the emotion quickly transforming into a morose kind of despair. A cold hand had closed around her heart, and it was squeezing with no regard for the pain it brought.

"I think it would help a lot if you didn't lie to yourself anymore. Or to her, for that matter," Cinder said. "If I am right and Weiss _is_ willfully ignoring your feelings, it's very likely that she also-"

"Shut. Up. You don't know _anything_!" Ruby jumped to her feet and stared down at Cinder, trembling with fury. "It doesn't matter how I feel, or how Weiss feels, because it _can't work_. I'm the last airbender! You know what that means – if you're half as smart as you think you are, you can connect the dots!" She turned away, hanging her head low. "You know what, I was actually doing very well about all of this, I had it had all figured out, until _you_ brought it up again!"

She kicked away at the ground, grunting loudly. Her heart was like thunder in her ears, so loud she thought it might just explode if she didn't calm down soon.

_Stupid stupid stupid stupid-_

Ruby straightened her posture and took a deep breath, emptying her mind. Bit by bit, she released the air from her lungs, then turned to face Cinder again and bowed.

"I'm really sorry," she said, as evenly as she could, and she meant every word. "You were just trying to help, and I yelled at you." She bowed her head. "Please forgive me."

Cinder looked up at her, and for the first time since they'd met, she appeared to have been caught completely off-guard. Whatever she had been expecting, Ruby had surprised her by no small measure.

"It's… it's okay," Cinder muttered. "I should be the one apologizing."

She got up and, after some hesitation, opened her arms welcomingly. Not wasting a second, Ruby stepped forward and hugged her, resting her head on the firebender's shoulder. For a moment, Cinder stood frozen, the embrace wholly one-sided…

And then Ruby felt a hand in the back of her head, caressing ever so softly, and she felt her heart warm back to normal.

* * *

Weiss stepped inside the house and instantly felt an urge to throw out her lunch as a familiar, but not at all welcomed smell invaded her nostrils. With tears welling up in her eyes, she stumbled her way to the kitchen, where she wasn't at all surprised to find a huge pot of stew boiling on the stove. What did surprise her, however, was that Pyrrha was the one mixing the harrowing substance, and not Jaune.

"Pyrrha!" Weiss exclaimed, her voice coming out weird as she pinched her nose. "What have you done? Is that… meat soup?" She stopped next to the earthbender, looked down at the stew, and nearly fainted. "Oh, goodness, it is. Why, Pyrrha? Why would you do that to us? To _yourself_?!"

Pyrrha turned to look at her, and Weiss noticed she had three different layers of cloth wrapped around her mouth and nose. But just from the look in her eyes, Weiss could tell how regretful she felt.

"I'm sorry!" Pyrrha said, barely audible through the cloth. "This was a huge mistake!"

"You don't say?" Weiss released her nose for a split second to breathe, and instantly regretted it as her head got frighteningly light. "Where's Jaune?"

As if summoned, Jaune walked into the kitchen, all smiles and giggles. The horrendous smell didn't seem to bother him in the least. A wordless shout came unbidden from Weiss' mouth, and she tackled him to the floor, absolutely livid.

"What have you done, you reckless fool?" she yelled. "Why did you have to force this upon poor Pyrrha?"

"S-she offered to help!" Jaune squeaked. "She likes my meat soup, Weiss! Why can't you just accept that?"

"She doesn't like it! She abhors it just like everyone else! She's just too pure to say it to your face!" Weiss looked back at Pyrrha. "Tell him the truth, Pyrrha! Put an end to this lie!"

Pyrrha looked from her to Jaune, eyes widening as a fierce conflict was wrought inside her. Weiss watched expectantly, while Jaune brought his hands to his cheeks, scared of what he might hear…

Finally, Pyrrha untied her cloths from around her face, opened her mouth to speak… and fainted as the smell hit her full-force. She hit the floor, one hand on her chest, tongue lolling out of her mouth.

"…Oh, no," Jaune said, horrified. "I'm a monster."

Weiss shook her head. "Like none other." She stood up. "Please throw that horrid concoction out. And make sure Pyrrha's not dead."

"W-won't you help?" Jaune asked. "I know I screwed up, but…"

"No, no, no. This is your mess, and you shall deal with the consequences," Weiss said. "Also, if I stay here one more minute, I'll faint too."

She wobbled away, nearly collapsing as she left the house through the front door. Never before had she been this happy to breathe in fresh air.

Perhaps it was irresponsible of her to leave Jaune to care for Pyrrha in the state she was in, but the earthbender had her share of blame for her current situation too. If she wasn't so eager to please Jaune, Pyrrha would have saved herself – and everyone else – a lot of trouble. But love could make fools of even the strongest warriors…

She sniffed the air, and was horrified to catch a trace of the soup's fragrance, even outside. If it was this bad, the house was bound to be infected for hours, if not days! She couldn't go back inside, lest she suffer the same fate as Pyrrha… and as the one responsible for the group's welfare, she had the duty of informing Ruby and Cinder before they too became victims.

Weiss steeled herself. "Honor and duty," she muttered under her breath, and marched away from the house.

* * *

Ruby and Cinder couldn't simply go back to the house after the former's outburst, and so, even as the sun dipped over the horizon and disappeared from view on the other side of Vale's walls, they stayed on their training grounds, sitting side by side in silence.

Truly, this was not how Ruby had seen the day going, but she wasn't yet sure whether she was disappointed by the way things had worked out. Firebending hadn't gone as well as she'd hoped, and the talk about Weiss and her feelings had left a sour taste in her mouth… but nonetheless, she'd taken an important step in her journey as the Avatar, and she had, despite everything, enjoyed Cinder's company.

It was strange how close Ruby felt to her. Maybe it was because Cinder was quite a bit older than her, relative to her other friends. Or maybe it was because she was a firebender – ever since learning about her mixed bloodline, Ruby had been searching for something to connect her to her father's side, and perhaps Cinder had become that.

The only thing she was sure of was that she liked Cinder. But even so, and as much as she defended her against Weiss, Ruby sometimes wondered if that was a good thing. Cinder was, after all, a former ally of the Fire Lord, and not just any ally, either, but one of her most trusted.

But Ruby had put her trust in Cinder, and her judgment had yet to be proven wrong. If Ruby didn't trust herself – if she started to doubt the very ideals of unity and balance she was supposed to uphold – then what good was she as an Avatar?

"There's that face again," Cinder said softly. "The one you make when you're worrying too much about something."

"That's a very specific face to remember." Ruby looked at Cinder suspiciously. "I think you just made that up so you'd sound cool."

"You see right through me. And here I was hoping the mask would last a little longer." Cinder sighed. "I'm still right, though. Your mind was in a very interesting place. Care to enlighten me?"

Ruby bit her lip. She wasn't opposed to sharing her thoughts with Cinder, but those particular ones… that sounded more than a little awkward. But wouldn't it be even more awkward if she refused? And Cinder would surely know if she lied, too…

"Well… I was thinking about, uh, you." Ruby fidgeted with her thumbs nervously. "Just thinking about how you were friends with the Fire Lord… You know, my sworn enemy. N-not in a bad way, I'm not upset or anything, I was just…"

"Curious? I don't blame you," Cinder said. "I'm not against talking about it, if you want."

Ruby searched Cinder's face for any signs of reluctance. It wouldn't feel right to pressure her into something she was uncomfortable with, even if she said otherwise. But Cinder seemed genuine enough, so Ruby nodded carefully with her head.

"This might come as a surprise, but I'm not actually native to the Fire Nation," Cinder said, and Ruby perked up in interest. "My mother was from a little village in the east coast of the Earth Kingdom. My father, on the other hand, was Fire Nation. He was a soldier in the army, even before the war started, and that's how they met and had me."

"So you're mixed too! I had no idea…" Ruby stared at Cinder in awe. "And you moved to the Fire Nation?"

"No. That was… after. My father settled down with my mother, and they lived together in her hometown." Cinder paused. "That didn't last long. One day, a Grimm horde fell upon the village. The people had no chance to defend against their numbers. It was… complete chaos…"

Ruby reached for Cinder, her first instinct being to comfort her, but she stopped herself when she saw the look in Cinder's eyes. It was unlike anything Ruby had seen from her yet – her eyes were unblinking, staring fixedly at nowhere in particular, as if she were in another world altogether. And her fingers, interlaced on her lap, were twitching and letting off tiny sparks…

"I was just a child then. My parents and I got separated in the panic, and that was the last time I saw them alive," Cinder said. "The Grimm were all around – Grimm and fire and _the screaming_ – all I knew to do was run and hide, run and hide, but that wasn't enough. They closed around me, and I bended with everything I had in me, but I was nothing to them."

Ruby gulped. "Cinder-"

"And then _she_ came." Cinder's lips parted in a small smile. "Fire Lord Raven, cutting through the monsters like they were nothing. She rescued me – not only that, she brought me back with her. She gave me a home, taught me as best she could…"

Maybe she shouldn't have been surprised, but Ruby couldn't help herself. The image she had of the Fire Lord was far from this benevolent warrior that saved little girls from the jaws of death. Heck, Ruby had talked with her personally, and she _knew_ how vile Raven Branwen was.

"I know what you're thinking. It's fine. I wouldn't be here if I disagreed," Cinder said. "But understand, Ruby. Raven might be using the fight against the Grimm as an excuse to conquer, but that doesn't necessarily mean she doesn't hold to that promise, contradictory as it might seem. The Fire Nation _is_ the world's best answer against the Grimm. Or it used to be, before you came along."

"But…" Ruby frowned. "That doesn't justify what she's done! She's torn the Earth Kingdom apart – she killed the Air Nomads, Cinder!"

"Didn't I say I agree with you?" Cinder turned to glare at her, and Ruby shrank a little at the intensity of her eyes. "Raven Branwen is a warlord, but she's not only that. As horrible as her actions are, they've saved lives. Think what you will of me for it, but that used to be enough for me to fight by her side." She shook her head derisively. "Until she completely lost her mind and allied with the Grimm – not to mention she tried to have you _killed_ by _my hands_."

Ruby looked away, regretting how quick she had been to judge. After what she had just been told, it should have been obvious how much Cinder despised the Fire Lord for her recent decisions.

"I had nightmares for the longest time after I was rescued. Every night, without fail, I would revisit that day. And every time, I'd wake up paralyzed by my own fear," Cinder said, her voice getting harsher with each word. "Until one day, I realized how _pathetic_ I was being, and I embraced the nightmares. I applied myself to getting stronger – I took all the rage and despair and terror of that day and I _owned it_. I swore to never again feel that helpless. And here I am today."

Cinder got up, eyes blazing like miniature suns, and offered a hand to Ruby. The redhead could only stare at her, a cold dread taking control of her body all of a sudden.

That wasn't Cinder who was staring at her anymore, was it?

"You want to firebend? You want to be the Avatar that will save the world and put the Fire Lord in her due place? Then stop being scared of your own shadow and _do it!_ " Cinder barked. "You have the power of hundreds of Avatars inside you, and with that, you could end this war in one fell swoop. So why don't you?!"

"Cinder, I-I don't think – that's not how I want to do things," Ruby stammered. "Besides, I can't control the Avatar State that well – it takes a lot of emotion and the right moment and – and honestly, I'm kinda scared to-"

"You're _scared_? After everything you've seen and gone through?" Cinder shouted. "When will it have been enough for you to _take action_?"

As slowly as she could, Ruby rose to her feet and backed away from Cinder, keeping her eyes locked on hers, but the firebender matched her steps. Suddenly, the fury on Cinder's face vanished, but that only terrified Ruby even more.

"Fine," Cinder said. "I'll just have to teach you some perspective, then."

"What? Cinder, don't-"

Ruby's words were cut short as a shower of flames filled her vision. Only barely did she manage to protect herself, raising up a spire from the ground and hiding behind it. The rock got unbearably hot, but she kept herself pressed against it, knowing that even the slightest touch from the fire could leave a permanent mark on her.

As quick as it came, the fiery onslaught ceased. Ruby's chest heaved as she struggled to take in air again, too terrified to move from her hiding spot. "C-Cinder, _please_ -"

The stone broke into shards, and a hand closed around her neck from behind. Suddenly, Ruby was being launched through the air, only to fall on her side and go rolling on the uneven ground. She braced herself with her hands, then jumped back as a fireball exploded right in front of her face.

"Cinder! J-just stop! I don't know why you're doing this, but just _stop_!" Ruby yelled. "I don't wanna fight you! Just forget this, and let's go back home!"

"So it's always forgive and forget with you? How _spineless_ can you be?" Cinder stopped to stare at her from a distance, flames burning on her hands. "No wonder the Air Nomads were so easily exterminated!"

Ruby gasped and glided to the side as another fireball came flying her way. In the blink of an eye, Cinder closed the distance between them and landed a punch across her face.

In a daze, Ruby stumbled back, holding her cheek. Cinder continued to speak, but Ruby couldn't make out the words over the ringing of her ears – until the firebender grabbed her by the collar and brought them nose-to-nose.

"-would Mommy be proud of her little Avatar now? Or would she be disappointed that you turned into such a weakling? Although, I don't think she would be all that surprised. You did already let her down once, after all."

For a second, the whole world seemed to stop. Ruby felt tears stinging in her eyes, and they only grew as Cinder smiled at her.

"Oh… Did I strike a nerve?"

She let go of Ruby's collar, only to strike with the back of her hand and send the girl stumbling away again. Ruby fell to her knees soundlessly and stayed there.

Cinder walked over, stopping before Ruby to stare down at her. The fire in her eyes lessened, but her smile stayed as she examined every inch of Ruby's body, as if asking herself if she needed to go any further.

Slowly, Ruby's head began to rise – and from her eyes shone a silver light as intense as a beacon. Her fists closed, and the earth trembled under them as she contemplated how best to wipe that smirk off Cinder's face-

But before she could, a string of water struck Cinder in the chest, and she crumbled and fell on her back. She sat up, gasping for air, and raised a hand to repel Ruby – but Weiss was between them now, two globes of water floating at either side of her. Her face reflected such wrath that no words could ever make justice of, and at that moment, Cinder wilted, all the fire in her going out at once.

"Go ahead. Make a move."

For an eternity, neither moved, Cinder knowing the threat was real, and Weiss begging with her eyes for the firebender to give her an excuse.

And then a loud sob broke them both from their trance, and Weiss dropped her water, crouching down and wrapping her arms around her dearest friend in an instant. Ruby was back to normal, but she was shaking beyond control, tears streaming down her face with seemingly no end.

"Ruby. I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…" Cinder's voice faltered. "I just wanted to bring out the true potential inside you."

She reached forward, but a water whip cracked next to her skull.

" _Leave_ ," Weiss ordered. "Leave, and if I ever see you anywhere near Ruby again – if you as much as _look_ at her – I'll make sure you won't look at _anyone_ ever again."

Cinder remained for a moment more, until her eyes met Ruby's and she finally got up. Without a word, she walked away. Weiss glared at her back until she was well out of view, then reinforced her hug on Ruby, pushing her head against her shoulder and running her hand through the redhead's hair.

"Shh. It's okay, Ruby. I'm here for you."

For some reason, that only seemed to make Ruby feel worse.

* * *

The night was well under way when Ruby finally calmed down enough to stand up and walk again. She was still shaking, however, and Weiss had to lead her by the hand on the way home. Not another word was shared between them, which Weiss felt terribly about, but what more could she say that wouldn't sound empty? She could lie, but would that help Ruby at all? Did Ruby even want to listen to her?

Once again, Weiss was reminded that, for all her pride, she was still woefully inadequate at being a good friend.

When they arrived, the house was free of its earlier smell, though Weiss didn't care much about that anymore, considering the circumstances. Almost as soon as they were inside, Ruby parted from Weiss, nearly running past Jaune and Pyrrha and disappearing on the bedrooms' hallway. A door slammed shut, and suddenly there was silence.

Jaune immediately turned to look at Weiss, concern obvious on his face. Pyrrha, on the other hand, turned her eyes to the floor, a frown appearing on her forehead. She tapped her foot lightly a couple times, then shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself.

"What happened?" Jaune whispered. "Where's Cinder?"

Weiss' anger flared anew at the name, and a hundred different answers came to her mind, but she bit her tongue. Lashing out would only make matters worse.

"We won't be seeing her anymore," she said, measuring her words carefully. "Things took a turn for the worse."

"Wait, did she hurt Ruby?" Jaune asked, much louder all of a sudden. His hand went to his waist, but he'd left his sword somewhere else. He trained his eyes on Weiss again. "Well, did she?"

"No." Weiss winced. "Yes. But not…" She sighed. "It doesn't matter. Cinder showed her true face. You'll have to do with that for now, because I am _not_ in any state to be discussing this."

"Okay. But what if she shows up here or something?" Jaune said. "We need to protect Ruby."

Weiss scoffed. "I already made it very clear what'll happen to Cinder if she tries anything."

"No offense, but Cinder is kind of in a whole other level to you, Weiss," Jaune said. "Do we actually stand any chance against her?"

Weiss began to reply, but Pyrrha raised her hand, and her shield came flying from her room to attach to her bracelet. She locked eyes with Weiss, a silent understanding taking form in an instant.

"Let her come."

* * *

It was an adequate lodging, Cinder thought. A tad on the small side, which coupled with the one miniscule window beside the bed, made it feel quite cramped. But at least it had a view of the palace grounds and the greater city beyond. And considering the circumstances that had led her here, she should be thankful to have any place to spend the night.

Some might say Cinder had a problem of not appreciating the things she had. She disagreed, of course – she had ambition, and sometimes that ambition backfired on her tremendously, like today. But she wasn't so careless that a mistake would be her ruin.

Cinder always had a plan to fall back on. Always.

"It's to your liking, then?" General Hazel's voice came from the doorway behind her, rumbling along the stone walls as was characteristic of him.

Cinder turned to face him, quiet in her judgement, just as he was. He had a stoic manner about him, something surely built up over many years. He would not be rushed. But she knew that beneath that quiet exterior was a force so terrible, even she would have difficulty matching it – if she was able to at all.

"It will suffice," Cinder said. "Please relay my thanks to the Earth Queen."

"You'll have the opportunity to talk to her yourself soon enough, I am certain." Hazel's eyes didn't leave her for a second, as if she were a trap about to set off at any moment. If anything, Cinder admired his diligence.

"I think we both would like it best if I spent as little time as possible with the Queen. Things would be… _easier_ that way, for all parties involved." Cinder smirked. "But I am here to serve, first and foremost, and if I am called upon…"

Hazel's gaze hardened. He crossed his arms and looked down at her, blocking the doorway completely. Cinder lowered a hand behind her back, joining index and middle fingers, and waited with baited breath…

"I did not expect you to come to Vale, especially in the company of such characters," Hazel said. "That you've ended up here, alone, does not surprise me."

Cinder had to keep a jolt of electricity from launching off her fingers. " _Thank you_ for your insight and hospitality. They are greatly appreciated," she managed to say, as neutrally as possible. "Now, if you'll excuse me."

Hazel gazed at her a moment more, then turned and left, closing the door behind him.

As soon as she was alone, Cinder's eyes sparked with renewed rage. She walked to the window and stared at the distant city, knowing that somewhere within it lay the source of her failure. But that wasn't the end of her stay here. She still had a mission, and she would do whatever it took to accomplish it.

Rage, as always, was the best fuel for the fires of her ambition, and she had plenty more to burn.

* * *

Ruby couldn't sleep. She'd have liked to believe it was because she was, for once, sleeping in an actual bed instead of her preferred tree branches, but she couldn't fool herself. The issue went much, much deeper than that.

A small part of her wondered if she was being silly. After everything she had gone through – losing her people, her mother; taking on waves upon waves of Grimm; hosting a hundred dead persons' voices inside her – _this_ still shook her? She'd lost a friend, but what was that in the grand scope of things?

It was nothing. But it still felt like the worst thing in the world.

If she'd learned anything from her past experiences, though, it was that time was the cure for nearly everything. She was reeling now, but sooner or later, she'd bounce back, and everything would return to normal. Or so she hoped. It was a small comfort.

When the bedroom door opened and someone stepped inside, Ruby buried her head in her pillow, trying to appear like she was sleeping. But she should have known Weiss wouldn't be fooled. The princess sat on the edge of the bed, setting down a metal tray with a teapot and cups on her lap.

"Here. Chamomile," Weiss said, pouring the tea. "You should drink some. It'll help."

"I don't need any stinking tea," Ruby groaned, turning just enough to glare at her.

Weiss was unfazed, simply holding out a cup in offer. Grumbling under her breath, Ruby sat up and took it, if only to appease Weiss. As she took a sip, however, she felt her body ease up in response to the gentle warmth of the drink. It didn't make things okay all of a sudden, but… it was a welcomed help.

Halfway through her cup, Ruby noticed that Weiss hadn't even bothered to pour one for herself. She could tell there was a lot going on inside the princess' mind, but Ruby found it hard to ask about it. It was like a rift had formed between them.

That one thought struck like a lightning bolt, bringing tears back to Ruby's eyes, and she had to put her tea down. Weiss took notice and turned to look at her, a gasp escaping her lips once she saw the expression on Ruby's face.

"You're here to call me a dolt, aren't you?" Ruby muttered, struggling to hold her cup steady.

"What? Ruby, why would you think that?" Weiss turned away to put the tray on the floor, but Ruby caught the hurt in her face. Great. Now she'd upset Weiss too. "I just came to check on you."

"I-I know. I'm sorry." Ruby tried to take another sip of her tea, but she was shaking too much. She put the cup down on the bedtable beside her, then looked down at her own lap, too upset to look Weiss in the face. "It's just… I feel so _stupid_. You warned me about Cinder again and again, but I refused to listen every time." She clenched her fists. "I deserved what I got."

"Ruby! If you think that, then you really are a dolt!" Weiss admonished. "I never want to hear anything like that leave your lips again, you hear?"

Ruby nodded mutely, though she didn't agree with Weiss much. So what if she was being harsh on herself? Lying about it wouldn't change how stupidly she'd been acting.

"Look, I _was_ right about Cinder. But that… that doesn't matter, okay?" Weiss said. "You wouldn't be you if you hadn't given Cinder a chance. That's just the type of person you are, and there's nothing wrong with that."

"How can you say that after what happened?" Ruby pursed her lips. "Stop treating me like a kid, Weiss. If I wasn't so naïve…"

"Uh-uh. I don't want to hear it." Weiss pointed a finger at Ruby's nose, shutting her up. "You're not at fault. Cinder is, entirely. And my being right about her doesn't make me smart or more mature or anything. It just makes me… me." She sighed. "To be honest, I'm not the slightest bit proud. I wish I could be more like you sometimes."

Ruby was starting to come around to Weiss' thinking, but things still didn't sit completely right with her. Yes, she would rather be trusting of people, but maybe some people didn't deserve that - the Fire Lord, for example.

"You're unbelievable." Weiss rolled her eyes. "You're not even that angry at Cinder, are you? You're angriest at yourself, because _of course_ you are. Admit it."

Ruby crossed her arms. "Why would I _not_ be angry at Cinder?"

"I don't know. You probably feel sorry for her, and believe that she was actually your friend." Weiss shrugged. "I know you pretty well, yes, but even I can't make sense of your logic sometimes. I just know I'm right about this."

"Well. Maybe I do feel a little sorry for her. She's had a pretty tough life. I kinda… I kinda think we're similar in that aspect," Ruby muttered. "And she was pretty alright, until she wasn't. At least I t-think so…"

Ruby looked warily at Weiss, expecting to receive a very pointed reprimand from her, but Weiss only smiled at her.

"You're not mad?" Ruby asked.

"No. I'd be surprised if you tried to argue with me," Weiss said. "I'm… happy you're still being yourself. I wouldn't like it if you change." Her eyes narrowed. "But don't let that get your head. Your mindset is still baffling to anyone with any hint of sensibility in them. You're lucky you have me watching out for you."

"Yeah…" Ruby smiled slightly. "Thanks for rescuing me, by the way."

Weiss cleared her throat. "It was nothing."

Weiss likely didn't know how much Ruby actually appreciated her intervention. To an outsider, it had looked like Cinder was about to hurt her badly… but Ruby knew that, if Weiss hadn't shown up when she did, the very opposite would have happened.

Just thinking about it made her shudder. The Avatar State… She didn't like to think about it much, but she couldn't ignore its existence. Maybe Cinder had had a valid point. With that power, Ruby might have little difficulty saving the world. But at what cost?

"I'll take the tea away if you don't want it," Weiss said, getting up.

"Uh, yeah. I'm not feeling up to it." Ruby swallowed dry, watching Weiss gather up what she'd brought into the room. "W-wait!"

Weiss looked back at her, raising an eyebrow.

"Could you… stay?" Ruby talked so quietly, even she had trouble hearing herself. "I don't wanna be alone. Just until I fall asleep…?"

Weiss looked around the room, seeming a little conflicted. Then, with a faint sigh, she put the tray back down on the floor and climbed onto the bed. They lay next to each other for a while, not saying anything. Eventually, Weiss turned on her side and began to wrap an arm around Ruby, but stopped herself, her eyes widening a bit – and rolled onto her other side, grumbling under her breath.

"Weiss?" Ruby called, worried things had gotten too awkward. "Are you okay…?"

"…Unbelievable," Weiss muttered. "You've grown taller than me."

"I have?" Ruby's eyes lit up. "Big spoon!"

She rolled around and hugged Weiss from behind, happily bending her head over the other girl's shoulder.

"…Dolt."


	38. The Queen's Dance

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Eighteen: The Queen's Dance**

* * *

"Take out the stash. A weapon for everyone. Anyone refuses, they can stay here and wait, but they should be warned that every decision comes at a cost. Got it?"

Blake had to admit, Adam had a way with words. His way of speaking with his allies was far from warm, but did that matter if, at the end of the day, it got the job done? Gentleness was for those with the time to afford it, and Adam had made it very clear that, out of the many things the White Fang didn't have on their side, time was chief amongst them.

"I want everything distributed by noon tomorrow. Now go, and don't waste a second."

Adam tapped on his helper's back, and he scrambled away, a hurried expression on his face. Blake watched quietly from her seat, taking note of the direction the helper was going. She hadn't been shown to the stash yet – whether because the need hadn't come up, or some other reason, she could only speculate.

Adam looked around at the frenzied state of their hideout, and after confirming that no other task needed his attention, came to Blake's table and sat down. She took a sip of her tea, peering at him over the edge of her cup. He looked tired, but he always did. He also always had a fiery look in his eyes, like he was on the cusp of unleashing his fury, righteous and unrelenting.

"Busy day," she said. "Can I help with anything?"

Adam ran a hand back through his hair and shook his head. "Not now," he took another look around the place, and finally his shoulders dropped, just the slightest bit. He couldn't let everyone know how taxing everything was on him. He was their leader, after all.

"I think we should slow down somewhat," Blake noted. "You've whipped everyone into a frenzy, and that's great for getting things prepared, but it will have been no use if we collapse of exhaustion when the time for action finally comes," she paused. "There's no reason to hurry."

"There's _every_ reason to hurry, Blake," Adam replied firmly. "Think of all the faunus that continue to suffer. A day or two more might not seem much to you and me, but we owe it to them to settle matters as fast as we can," his eyes narrowed dangerously, as his he were gazing at an invisible enemy behind her. "And the world is an unpredictable place. We don't know what tomorrow may bring. We wait too long, we might lose our chance, and _then_ everything will have been in vain."

Blake took another sip of her tea. Well, she didn't have a counter to that argument, and even if she did, she knew Adam wouldn't be swayed.

"Then _you_ , at least, should slow down," she said. "A couple hours' sleep wouldn't hurt."

"I appreciate the concern, but I'll have plenty of time to sleep when everything's over," Adam rebuked.

"Somehow, I doubt that," Blake muttered behind her teacup.

Adam closed his eyes, and for a while, just sat there, his chest rising and falling ever so subtly. If Blake didn't know better, she would have thought he was taking an impromptu nap. Alas, that was too much to hope for.

"I do have something to ask of you," Adam said suddenly, opening his eyes. "There's something else we have to see to before the final move, and it's especially important that it goes without problem. I can trust only you with that."

"I'm flattered." Blake put her cup down. "What's the mission?"

"The captain of the City Guard. Vultur Winchester. You know him?"

"Yes. We didn't exactly hit it off." Blake leaned back on her chair, crossing her arms. "Why?"

"I want you to capture him. He should be on an off day today, so you'll find him in his home. He's got a son and a wife. You'll have to take them too," Adam said. "You'll have help, of course. I'll handpick the men myself, but if you have any objections…"

"You're asking me to kidnap a man," Blake said bluntly. "Are you sure I'm the one for the job?"

Adam scowled. "Winchester is the worst kind of scum in this city, and that's saying something. He's left hundreds of faunus out in the wilds to be picked off by Grimm, and that's just one thing he's guilt of. He deserves everything that comes his way."

"And his family?"

"The apple doesn't fall far from the tree," Adam said, a glint in his eyes. "I thought you'd be delighted to teach that brat a lesson after what he did to you, Blake."

So he'd known from the start that she'd met both father and son. Blake wasn't surprised by that revelation or by his attempt to trick her. It was only par for the course with him.

"You didn't actually think that, Adam. You know me better than that," Blake said. "Which is also why you knew I would accept, regardless of my personal feelings on the matter."

"Exactly," Adam smirked. "See, Blake? Together, we are invincible," he stood up. "I know you won't disappoint, and you know I won't make waste of your work."

"That does make it any easier to stomach…" Blake sighed. "So, where's the Winchester house and how do I get to it?"

* * *

Ruby blankly at the invite, hoping that sooner or latter the sick feeling in her stomach would fade, but so far, that had yet to happen. Dances and fancy dresses and nobles… Just the thought was making her head spin.

"You'll have to get over it by dusk, Ruby," Weiss said as she grabbed her purse and hung it over her shoulder, preparing to leave the house. "I would sooner die than show up to the palace with a green-faced Avatar in tow."

"But… but…" Ruby gulped. "I don't _have_ to go…"

"You absolutely do. We all do," Weiss tapped her foot imperiously. "Jaune is going too, and I haven't heard _him_ complain."

"That's because I know better than speak up," Jaune pointed out, then shuddered as the princess' eyes fixed on him. "I m-mean, I've got no complaints! None at all! A party at the Queen's? That sounds _awesome_! R-right, Ruby?"

Ruby whimpered quietly. If she couldn't count on Jaune's support, then she truly was doomed.

"Don't worry, Ruby," Pyrrha said, coming out of the hallway to join Weiss. "You might be nervous now, but you'll feel better once we're actually there. I've never attended one myself, but word of royal parties reached Mistral every year, and they're said to be an experience unlike any other."

"…That doesn't mean they're _good_ experiences," Ruby said.

Pyrrha blinked a couple times, then raised a finger and gave her a wide smile. "Regardless! Weiss and I will make sure to get you a dress that will make you the star of the party. You'll outshine the Queen herself, I guarantee!"

"Pyrrha, I think you're missing the point…" Ruby sighed. "But thanks, anyway."

"When we come back, you had better be over this, Ruby," Weiss warned. "We must make a good impression!"

Pyrrha looked pitifully at Ruby, then took Weiss by the wrist and dragged her out the front door, the princess glaring at Ruby all the while.

A few moments passed, then Jaune groaned loudly and dropped on the living room sofa. "Tonight's gonna suck, isn't it?"

"You bet," Ruby curled up beside him, resting her head on his lap. "I just _haaate_ attention, and I know they're not gonna leave me alone for a second there."

"Who even commemorates war planning?" Jaune shook his head. "It's like - _yaaay, we've finally stopped discussing how to punch people in the face and now we're going to punch people in the face for real! Shake it like there's no tomorrow, everyone!_ "

Ruby giggled. "That does sound silly. But, I guess it makes some sense…" she frowned. "Nobody wants war, I guess, and if we focus too much on it, we'll go crazy. So instead, let's dance and forget for a while…"

"That doesn't sound right, though," Jaune said. "Dancing about going to war…"

Ruby couldn't agree more. She knew war was inevitable, and the Earth Kingdom had every reason to attack the Fire Nation after the last fifteen years, but that didn't make the reality of it any less horrible.

But she was just a girl who happened to be the Avatar. In the end, what did she know?

* * *

Somehow, the opulence of the Winchester house managed to surprise Blake. She had expected something big and extravagant, but what was before her was just too much, especially for a family of three. She was sure he had servants too, but the likelihood of him allowing them to live there was as high as of him funding an orphanage for lost faunus.

As upsetting as it was, there were plenty of positives to take from what she discovered about the house. The size of it would make her activity inside unlikely to be noticed until it was too late, and with the estate's relatively isolated position in the riddle ring, there would be no help coming from the city. Retreat would be easy too – she had come there through the underground network, exiting just outside the gates. At night, it would be even easier to come and go unnoticed, even with hostages.

The fact that she was so thoroughly planning a kidnapping was disturbing, and Blake had half a mind to just walk away and never see Adam again, but she kept herself focused and toughed it out. She had to keep up appearances, even if she was disgusted with herself.

Truthfully, she wasn't sure what she was waiting for, going along with what Adam was doing. A piece of her was hoping he meant every word he'd said to her, that he wouldn't go any farther with his plans. Him – the White Fang – they were going to make a better Vale for the faunus.

Another part of her, the pessimist – the one which, for good or bad, usually took charge of things – knew better. She was keeping close to Adam so she could stop him when the time came. Until then, she had to play things smart.

She was putting too much on the line, and had sacrificed too much already, to see it all amount to nothing.

* * *

When Weiss and Pyrrha returned, they had huge bags in each hand, fill with everything they (supposedly) needed for a formal event of such importance as a night at the palace. Just taking a glance at the contents gave Ruby a bit of a panic attack, but she managed to fake it before Weiss gave her an earful again.

The group had a quick afternoon snack, then everyone retreated to their rooms to prepare. Once she was alone, Ruby took out the dress from the bag she had received from Pyrrha and laid it out on her bed.

It was certainly… red. That was about as much as she could say about it. She was sure Pyrrha had picked out a fantastic outfit for her, but Ruby was less worried about that, and more about herself in general. _Dress_ and _Ruby_ just didn't match at all in her mind. Plus, what was those weird shoes? Was she supposed to walk in those?

She decided to stop agonizing over everything and just got the dressing done with as quick as possible, and in five minutes flat, she was back in the living room, pacing around and taking deep breathes to calm herself.

That was, until she tripped and almost twisted her ankle. After that, she resigned herself to sitting on the sofa and cursing everything in life that had led her to this moment.

A little while later, she heard footsteps coming down the hall. She peered over the sofa and saw Jaune approaching, wearing a faint blue and white suit – Water Tribe style, she assumed.

"Oh, my!" Ruby got up, faking a posh accent. "I must say, young man, you look positively sprinting!"

"Sprinting?" Jaune looked at her in confusion. "You mean dashing?"

"Uh… y-yeah…?" Ruby said. "You look nice, is what I'm saying."

"Oh, thanks, Ruby!" Jaune put his hands on his hips and posed. "To be honest, I was feeling a little weird about it – I'm not a suit kinda guy, and my neck feels a little too tight – but no! I'm gonna own this style, and everyone at the party is going to be jealous of me!" He shrugged. "All the men, at least."

"They will be, for sure!" Ruby giggled. "W-what about me? Do I look nice?" she bowed her head bashfully. "You don't have to lie…"

"That's no problem, 'cause there's no reason for me to lie. You look amazing, Ruby!" Jaune exclaimed. "You look so amazing, in fact, that I temporarily lost my voice when I first laid eyes on you! If you hadn't broken the silence, I might have just stood there forever. That's how amazing you look."

Ruby hadn't expected such a response, but she certainly wasn't upset about it. She didn't even care if Jaune was lying or exaggerating. Just hearing his approval made her feel a lot better.

"T-thanks, Jaune…" she said. "I'm just not sure about these shoes. I can barely walk in them, and we're supposed to dance? Also, if Grimm show up, there's no way I'm gonna be able to fight them."

"Ruby, I think it's more likely that the Fire Lord will show up than any Grimm," Jaune said. "You're gonna be fine. And the shoes look nice."

"Hmm. If you say so," Ruby looked at him suspiciously. "You got a lot of experience about this stuff from your sisters, eh?"

Jaune grinned. "I can't deny nor confirm that theory."

"Is it that hard to believe he's a charmer by nature?"

Ruby turned to look at Pyrrha as she entered the living room, wearing a long sleeveless dress in Earth Kingdom colors. A yellow sash was wrapped around her waist, the loose end falling beside a barely-exposed thigh. From her ears hung two earrings which, as far as Ruby knew, were genuine emeralds – like her eyes.

"Woah," Ruby had to take a deep breath. "That's, uh… That's a good look on you, Pyrrha."

"It is?" Pyrrha looked down at herself, smiling nervously. "It's been a while since I've worn something like this. It's very traditional. I expect many will find it boring, actually."

"Boring is the last word I'd use to describe you right now!" Ruby pouted. "Honestly, I'm kinda jealous."

"Oh, stop it. You look gorgeous," Pyrrha dismissed her with a gesture. "Did you like what I picked for you?"

"Yeah, but the shoes-"

"You'll get used to them. I'll give you a few pointers to help you too."

Ruby nodded half-heartedly. She had been hoping for Pyrrha to offer her a change of footwear, but it seemed the mistralian was really invested in the items she'd picked for her. With that being the case, the only thing Ruby could do was make the best of it and not let Pyrrha down.

She was about to ask how she was supposed to walk exactly, when Pyrrha's eyes turned away from them, and to Jaune. Ruby looked at him too, and realized he had been silent ever since Pyrrha had joined them. He had a really… _strange_ look on his face.

"Jaune, are you feeling okay?" Pyrrha asked, leaning towards him a bit to inspect his face, which only caused him to turn even paler. "You seem a little sick. Are you really that nervous about the party?"

Jaune opened his mouth, but only a breathless squeal came out. His eyes widened, and he almost fell to the floor like a boneless doll.

"Ah, I see. You didn't arrange your collar properly," Pyrrha said. "Here, let me help you."

She stepped up to him and adjusted his collar, then looked at the rest of him and started fixing many other small things about his suit and hair. Throughout all of it, Jaune remained silent, wide eyes fixed on Pyrrha like she was some sort of otherworld apparition.

"There! All done. You should look even more handsome now," Pyrrha stepped back, joining her hands behind her back and smiling coyly at him. "How do you feel?"

"Uh… uuuh…" Jaune swallowed dry. "Better. T-thanks, Pyrrha. You're really a… lifesaver."

"Thank you, Jaune," she purred, leaning forward again. Ruby nearly screamed. "And what do you think of my… dress?"

Jaune's voice was less than a whisper. "It's a… a… very good… dress?"

Pyrrha nodded appreciatively, blew him a kiss, then turned her back to him and winked at Ruby. The younger redhead's jaw dropped. She had never expected anything like that from the ever-virtuous Pyrrha Nikos, but her eyes and ears had been witnesses to something amazing, and she wasn't sure whether to be awed or appalled.

"I think Weiss will take a while longer to join us," Pyrrha said, like nothing out of the ordinary had taken place. "Shall I give you those pointers in the meanwhile, Ruby?"

"Sure…" Ruby replied cautiously. Anything to keep that wicked other-Pyrrha in check, for Jaune's sake if nothing else. But if she returned and turned on her instead, Ruby was running out of the house and never coming back.

* * *

Two hours later, Jaune had somewhat recovered from his daze, and Pyrrha had run out of tips for Ruby. And Weiss – finally, she made her appearance, clad in a blue and black dress, braided hair falling over her shoulder. It was a simple look, all things considered, but even so…

"You're breathtaking, Weiss!" Pyrrha clasped her hands. "The time spent was definitely worth it!"

"Thank you. It was no easy task, but for a princess of the North Pole, only the most refined of appearances are expected," Weiss said, spinning around slowly. "Your help with my hair was deeply appreciated," she stopped. "Jaune, if you stare at me for more than five seconds at a time, you will sorely regret it. Heavens help you should you whistle in my general vicinity."

"W-what?" Jaune raised his hands indignantly. "I don't even know how to whistle!"

"And that skill had better remain unlearned for the rest of the night," Weiss smirked. "Now that the rules are established, shall we get going?"

She turned to Ruby and gave her a look-over, then nodded, sufficiently pleased. Ruby looked away hastily, her eyes racing all over the room in a sudden panic.

"I see no reason to dally. The event starts at dusk, yes?" Pyrrha looked out the window. "We should arrive just in time if we leave now."

"Impeccably timed by yours truly, as always," Weiss said. "Are you comfortable, Ruby?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Let's go, then."

Weiss opened the door and stepped outside. Ruby took a moment, simultaneously glad and disappointed that Weiss had paid her no great attention.

Pyrrha turned to Jaune and offered her arm. "Shall we?"

Jaune froze in terror, and Ruby quietly slipped out before things got weird again.

* * *

Cardin swung his mace, and the sound of it slamming against the training dummy spread throughout the estate's backyard. A drop of sweat rolled down his forehead and dripped off the tip of his nose. He swept his hair back from his forehead, then held his mace in both hands again and prepared his next blow.

This was not how he liked to spend his nights. He would rather be out in the city with his friends, doing whatever they pleased. Even being at the walls, laying down the law, would be better than this. But his father was home, so that meant forgetting the easy life and working his butt off to show that he was, without a shadow of a doubt, strong and worthy of taking his position when he inevitably retired. After all, if he wanted to be captain, he would need the previous one's approval.

That wouldn't be such a problem if his father was less of a tyrant, but that wasn't something Cardin could change with his mace.

He lifted his weapon above his head and breathed in deeply, focusing on the dummy's head, but just as he was about to strike down, a rustling noise broke his concentration. Cardin looked behind him, at the bushes and trees that surrounded the estate, but there was no person or animal to be seen. Not even a Grimm, which he could totally take on, no problem at all. The universe wouldn't allow him even that little of a break today.

He turned back forward and swung his mace – and midway through the motion, a ribbon wrapped around his wrists and bound them together. Cardin dropped his mace and tried to free himself, but suddenly he was on the ground, face-first into the dirt, with a knee pressing against a spot just below his neck.

"Scream, and I won't hesitate to gag you."

Struggling where he lay, Cardin managed to look up and see his assailant. Two amber eyes bore down on him, cold and ruthless, and a little above, two cat ears sprouted out of a mane of black hair.

" _You_! The firebender's pet!" he spat at her, hitting her straight in the cheek. "Here to finish off master's work?"

Blake flicked the spit off her cheek, never breaking eye contact with him. "I warned you."

She stood up, pulling him along with her ribbon. Cardin tried to spin around and kick her, but Blake was already behind him again, somehow, tying his wrists with a powerful knot. She shoved him forward lightly, only to wrap another piece of fabric around the lower half of his face. Cardin screamed angrily, but it came out muffled.

"Nobody will hear you now," Blake said. "Even if they did, no help would come. Your family is in a similar situation." She grabbed him by his arms and pulled him towards him, whispering next to his ear. "I'm sorry about this. Please cooperate."

Angry as he was, the mention of his family made Cardin's blood run cold, and he stopped struggling altogether. He looked at Blake questioningly, and for the first time she looked away, as if she couldn't bear to maintain eye contact.

"We'll only hurt you if you force us to," she said. "My word can't mean that much to you, but that much, I can promise you."

Cardin rolled his eyes. Yeah, he was _so_ relieved now. Blake sighed, then started leading him away from the backyard, entering the house and taking him to the front hall, where his father and mother were kneeling on the floor, bound and gagged just like him. A half-dozen faunus surrounded them, all wearing white Grimm-like masks.

"You," one of them said, pointing at Blake. "Your mask. You forgot to wear it."

Blake pushed Cardin to the floor beside his father. "I didn't forget. I didn't want to hide my face."

"Ah, of course. Made it even sweeter, yeah?"

Blake looked down at Cardin.

"No."

* * *

Even arriving early to the palace, Ruby and friends found a huge crowd of guests already there. The great hall was absolutely bustling with nobles dressed extravagantly, while servants snaked around them offering pastries and drinks, and guards lined up the walls, benders and otherwise.

"Oh, no," Ruby grabbed Weiss' arm. "There are so many people. W-Weiss? I think I'm – I think I'm freaking out!"

"Shh. Calm down, take a deep breath," Weiss patted her on the elbow. "Everything's fine. You'll get used to the people."

"Stay with me?" Ruby gulped. "Sorry, I don't wanna be a bother…"

"Stop. I thought you were overreacting before, but I can see now that wasn't the case," Weiss looked around. "Here's the plan. We stay together and find the Queen so you can talk to her. I'll try and keep the vultures off you. In return, you'll refrain from throwing up on my shoes."

"D-deal," Ruby nodded laboriously. "I'll try my best."

"I would expect nothing less," Weiss took her hand and squeezed. "Let's go."

They walked into the crowd, Weiss waving impeccably at the guests they passed while dragging a very sick-looking Ruby along. Back at the entrance, Pyrrha smiled at the display, then turned to Jaune.

"You're fine, right?" she asked. "We could slip out while no one's looking. There's no many people, they might just not notice our absence. I'll take the blame if Weiss gets mad."

"No. I'm okay. If Ruby can do this, so can I," he smiled at Pyrrha. "Besides, you're actually excited about this. I don't wanna let you down."

"Like you ever could," Pyrrha said. "Thank you, Jaune."

"My mother always said, a gentleman's first priority is to make his lady happy," Jaune stated confidently, only seeming to realize what he was saying once the words left his mouth. "N-not that you're my lady or anything, I just meant… Err…"

"I think I get what you meant," Pyrrha chuckled. "Would you like me to teach you a dance, my gentleman?"

"You're really full of yourself, assuming it'll be you teaching me."

Before Pyrrha could ask what he meant, Jaune pulled her into the crowd, and soon found herself locked in a gentle rhythm with him, her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Earth Queen Glynda was, as it turned out, seated on a chair at the very end of the great hall, overlooking the rest of the party with a glass of wine at hand. Closest to her, but giving her ample space, was General Hazel, leaning against the wall behind her with a stony look on his face. A number of soldiers maintained a loose line separating the Queen from her guests. Anyone trying to get past to talk to her would find themselves in big trouble.

Luckily, that did not apply to Ruby and Weiss. While the soldiers stopped them from approaching at first, as soon as Glynda saw them, she gestured for them to be let through. Ruby nodded gratefully to the soldiers, while Weiss went ahead and bowed to the Queen.

"Good evening, Your Majesty," Weiss said. "Allow me to thank you for your gracious invitation, and for the chance to talk to you personally."

"I couldn't throw a party and not invite the Avatar and her friends, now could I?" Glynda smiled, putting aside her glass. "And please, such formality is unnecessary. We are equals, are we not?"

"I suppose," Weiss hardly thought herself as important as a queen, at least not yet, but she wasn't about to argue with her host under her roof. "Ruby?"

Ruby looked away from the guests at the other side of the soldiers, blinking rapidly. "Oh, hello, Glynda. I mean, Queen Goodwitch."

"As always, Glynda will suffice," the Queen said. "I'm glad you two showed up. Your contributions played no small part in the formations of our plan. In fact, if you hadn't come to myself and my city, I'm ashamed to say we might have spent a year and more planning a counter-attack that, inevitably, would never have happened."

"I only did my sworn duty as a princess of the Water Tribe," Weiss said solemnly. "Ruby, I'm afraid, still has no clue what a trebuchet is."

"Trebu-what?"

"Precisely."

Glynda chuckled, took a sip of her wine, then raised an eyebrow at the both of them. "So, was there any particular reason you wanted to speak to me? Or did you simply take pity of a lonely old woman?"

Weiss looked at Ruby expectantly, and the redhead dragged her feet across the floor, inadvertently causing a screeching noise with her heel. While Weiss turned red in embarrassment, Ruby looked up at the Queen in panic and blurted out what was on her mind.

"I don't think you should have thrown this party at all!"

"Ruby!" The only reason Weiss didn't kick Ruby in the shin was because she had spent too much on her shoes to risk damaging them so carelessly. "Please, Your Majesty, don't mind what she said. What Ruby meant to say was-"

"No, let her speak," Glynda raised a hand to silence her. "As I said, we are equals, and equals are expected to criticize each other."

" _Criticize_ sounds kinda harsh…" Ruby said hesitantly. "I just feel a little weird about all of this. It doesn't sit well with me that we're dancing and laughing and drinking and all that, all because we're resuming the war. That's just not…" she shook her head. "And I also think it's awful because of the soldiers that are still out there, fighting the Grimm and saving people. And Atlas is still under the Fire Nation's control…"

Glynda hummed under her breath as she took a couple more sips of wine. Weiss appeared on the verge of a breakdown, her hands opening and closing nervously near her waist. If it weren't for the presence of the Queen, Ruby suspected she would be getting a legendary scolding right now.

"I see your point," Glynda said finally. "You have a good heart, Avatar Ruby. I believe that's the biggest reason you've been capable of keeping up your battles for so long. Most people would have given in to despair in your place." She gestured at the rest of the guests. "That's why this is necessary. A party might seem frivolous and distasteful, but people need hope. This, unfortunately, is the best way I have to give that to them."

Ruby frowned. "Well, maybe you should invite the people who actually matter next time, then."

For a moment, the Queen's face twisted into a scowl, but then she took a sip of her wine and returned to a contemplative expression. "I'll take that into consideration. Thank you, Avatar."

Weiss looked from Ruby to the Queen, then bowed nervously and took the Avatar by the wrist and dragged her away and back into the crowd.

"Have you gone mad, Ruby?!" Weiss hissed. "Pray tell, what gave you the impression that saying _that_ to the Queen of the Earth Kingdom was a sensible thing to do?"

"I was just speaking my mind," Ruby said. "Plus, she said I was allowed to criticize."

"She was being courteous, you dunce!" Weiss stopped to slap her in the shoulder. "You were lucky you didn't get us thrown in the dungeons. Did you see the look on General Hazel's face?"

"No? I barely saw him move," Ruby frowned. "Are you sure that wasn't a _statue_ of General Hazel?"

"He was looking straight at you, and he looked _furious_ ," Weiss sighed. "Getting back in the Queen's favor is going to be no easy task. I swear, Ruby, sometimes… At least you don't want to vomit anymore."

"About that…"

Weiss counted to ten, then took Ruby's wrist again and resumed walking. "Let's find Jaune and Pyrrha. I can only babysit you for so long."

* * *

"Here they are."

Blake shoved Cardin to his knees on the floor of the White Fang hideout. Adam inspected him for a moment, then his parents, before nodding in satisfaction.

"I knew I could count on you, Blake," he said. "I take it they didn't cause you any trouble?"

"They behaved like angels," Blake replied. "What now? Should I make room for them somewhere?"

"No need," Adam snapped his fingers, then gestured for the nearest faunus to get everyone's attention. "They won't be staying long. Neither will us."

Blake didn't know what to make of that statement. Before she could ask, Adam had climbed onto a table, and all the White Fang gathered around him to listen.

"Tonight is the night we've been preparing so long for. Tonight, we take to the palace of the Earth Queen and seize our rightful place in Vale, and the Earth Kingdom!" he yelled. "Not a day more will we spend under the tyranny of humans. Not a day will we suffer their scorn and hatred. Not a day more will we be cowed. Tonight, we – the White Fang – _rise_!"

Adam lifted his sword above his head, and an uproar exploded from the White Fang, along with the sounds of dozens of blades unsheathing and clashing against each other.

On the floor, the Winchester family whimpered and tried to crawl away, but it was to no avail. Cardin glared at Blake with murder in his eyes.

As the White Fang took to the tunnels, taking the Winchesters with them, Blake didn't move, a paralyzing regret taking hold of her and keeping her in place. She hadn't wanted this. Not today. Not ever.

"The preparations were done faster than I'd thought. I decided there was no reason to wait any more," Adam said, rejoining her. "I'm sorry I didn't warn you earlier."

" _Warn_ me?" Blake repeated, barely keeping her anger in check. "Adam, tell me this wasn't the plan all along. Tell me you weren't lying!"

"Blake. What reason could I have for lying to you?" Adam asked. "I trust you completely. Don't you trust me?"

Blake clenched her fists. "It's hard to when you make decisions like that without ever consulting me," she said through gritted teeth. "You are aware you aren't the only one with stakes on this?"

"You're right. I should have consulted you, and I'm sorry I didn't. But it's too late now," Adam wrapped a hand around one of hers. "You'll still be there by my side, won't you, darling?"

"…Yes," Blake closed her eyes. "I trust you, Adam."

"Good," he smiled. "You know I meant what I said earlier, right? About slowing down once we're done with this all of this. Sure, things will be hectic for a while, but… There is a reason why we're fighting so hard for our peace and quiet."

He kissed her on the forehead, then moved after the White Fang.

Blake clutched her sword.

Was this what she wanted?

* * *

"Alright, I'll concede this to you," Pyrrha said. "You are a better dancer than me. Barely."

Jaune spun her around her, lowered her almost parallel to the floor, then brought her back up with another spin. "Barely?"

"Alright," Pyrrha stumbled to a stop, grabbing him by the shoulders. "I'm hopelessly outclasses. Where did you learn all this? I know the usual answer, but I don't think seven sisters will cut it this time. Just how much can one learn from-"

"Pyrrha, wait."

She stopped talking, startled by his sudden seriousness. Noticing he was looking over her shoulder, Pyrrha turned around…

Not too far away from them, separated only by a few dancing couples in-between, was Cinder Fall, leaning against a pillar with a small dish of sweets on her hands. She looked to be completely disinterested in the people around her. Even when she crossed eyes with Pyrrha, the most she mustered was a casual wave, then she shortly returned to eating.

"Well that's a little upsetting," Pyrrha whispered. "What is she doing here? I thought she'd left the city after what happened."

"I don't know, and I don't particularly care," Jaune glared at the firebender. "I just don't like this."

"You don't think she might be looking for Ruby?" Pyrrha asked, concern starting to get the best of her. "She can't be. She knows what'll happen if she steps anywhere close to her. But if she is, we should…" she shook her head. "No. Let's leave her alone. She hasn't bothered us so far."

"No way," Jaune said, sounding totally unlike himself as he let go of Pyrrha and started towards Cinder. "I'm not going to just ignore her."

Pyrrha was momentarily torn between going along with his plan or stopping him, but soon she came to a decision and caught up to him, steeling herself for whatever came next.

"Hey!" Jaune exclaimed. "Cinder!"

Cinder looked up from her plate, scanned him up and down, then grabbed a miniature chocolate cake and took a bite. "Good evening."

"Good evening? Oh, yes, this is an excellent evening!" Jaune shook a fist at her. "Or at least it was, until you showed up!"

"My apologies. Although, I must point out you approached me, not the other way around," Cinder said. "I do appreciate your spirit."

"I can't believe it – you're just gonna stand there and act like everything's okay?" Jaune asked. "We haven't forgotten what you did to Ruby, okay? We weren't there personally, but we know what happened. And let me tell you, Pyrrha and I are not happy about it!"

Cinder rolled her eyes. "Yes. You've made that very evident. Thank you."

Jaune was about to punch something – her face would be his first option – but he held himself back. "What are you even doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? Just look at my face." She took another sweet to her mouth and chewed on it with an absolutely emotionless expression on her face.

"…I don't know what that's supposed to tell me," Jaune said.

"I'm celebrating, of course," Cinder said. "Rejoicing in the fruits of my work. You might remember that I've working with the Queen and her counselors to devise a counter-offensive against the Fire Nation. And the motive behind this party… I don't have to fill you in on that, surely."

"Right," Jaune glared at her. "I'm sure this is the perfect crowd to find another fifteen-year-old girl to emotionally scar, too."

Cinder sighed, as if she was already exhausted of him, and turned her eyes to Pyrrha.

"I wonder, little man, if you would have been quite as brave, had your girlfriend not been two steps behind you from the moment you came to me," she winked at Pyrrha. "I see you took my advice, Pyrrha. Good job."

Pyrrha's face twisted with shock and rage. Jaune looked at her, utterly confused.

"This is sad. I've run out of sweets," Cinder sighed. "I'll go refill my plate. If you wait here, I'll be more than happy to resume this riveting conversation once I return."

Cinder looked at the both of them, searching for a reaction, then shrugged and started walking away. Before she got too far, however, Pyrrha stepped towards her "You really are heartless, aren't you? You're not sorry at all!" she exclaimed. "You don't even think what you did was wrong!"

Cinder turned around, her previous apathy gone and replaced by a cold fury. "Yes. I don't regret anything," she said. "You can coddle the Avatar all you want. Treat her like a child – be my guest. But when she doesn't have the strength to do what is needed and she falls, that will be on your shoulders, and yours alone."

"So what? You're some kind of righteous monster? Are you saving humanity?" Pyrrha scoffed. "Is _that_ how you justify the things you do?"

"Yes, I think so. Do you feel better now?"

Cinder waited for a response, but Pyrrha could do nothing more than glare at her. With a little smile on her lips, Cinder turned back around and walked away, disappearing in the crowd.

Jaune walked up to Pyrrha. "Well that was cheerful," he frowned. "Maybe we shouldn't have talked to her after all."

"You think?" Pyrrha sighed. "I feel awful. Let's not mention this to Ruby and Weiss, okay?"

"Agreed," Jaune said. "You're not in a dancing mood anymore, are you?"

"No. Sorry."

Pyrrha crossed her arms and turned to glare at nothing in particular. Jaune stayed silent, figuring she preferred not talking for a while. He had a lot of process, too.

He wondered what that advice was which Cinder had given Pyrrha.

* * *

"Oh, boy. What's this doom and gloom?" Ruby poked her head between Jaune and Pyrrha. "You two almost look worse than me."

"Did Jaune throw up on you, Pyrrha?" Weiss asked. "I will only be sympathetic if he did. To you solely, of course."

"No. We've actually had a wonderful time together, thank you," Pyrrha said. "We're taking a rest, is all. Dancing can be quite tiring."

"Dancing? Now you're playing a joke on me," Weiss stifled a laugh. "As if _Jaune_ could dance any better than a limp beaver-duck."

Pyrrha stared at her for a moment, then gestured at Jaune, who offered a hand. "Have a try yourself."

Weiss looked at them suspiciously, then gingerly took Jaune's hand. "If you step on my toes, you will pay dearly."

"Yes, you know I always appreciate a challenge, princess," Jaune said, and Weiss was so surprised by the confidence in his voice, Ruby just had to laugh at her face as she was dragged away.

Ruby watched her two first friends dance, growing increasingly awed by the suaveness of Jaune's moves, while Weiss' reactions only got funnier. Delighted, she looked at Pyrrha, who was standing beside her, but upon seeing the bitter look on the earthbender's face, Ruby became very worried.

"Pyrrha? Are you okay?" she asked. "You're not jealous all of a sudden, right?"

"What? No! That's not it at all!" Pyrrha shook her head, showing a smile so fake it made Ruby's heart ache. "I'm glad Jaune and Weiss are having a good time together."

"If you say so," Ruby said patiently. "What's bothering you, then?"

"It's… not that big a deal, Ruby. I don't want to bother you over nothing," Pyrrha said.

"Come on, Pyrrha! We're friends! This is what friends are for – talking about anything, even if it seems silly!" Ruby said. "I won't tell the others, if that's the problem."

"No. It's just…" Pyrrha sighed. "If you got really good advice from someone you absolutely despised, would you still do what they said? What if they were manipulating you somehow?

"Hmm… That's a tricky question," Ruby rubbed her chin, deep in thought. "I think… good advice is good regardless of where it came from. Even if the person had bad intentions at heart, if the advice works, it works. And if we only listened to the people we like, and turned deaf to the people we hate, then we wouldn't ever change that much. We'd stay the same, forever. Does that help?"

"…Yeah. I think it does," Pyrrha smiled, and this time Ruby could tell it was genuine. "Thanks, Ruby. Sometimes I forget how wise you can be."

"Eh, it was nothing," Ruby shrugged. "I'm just glad to have something to distract me from the funny feeling in my belly!" she grimaced. "Oh no it's still there why did I say that out loud-"

Pyrrha pated her on the shoulder comfortingly, then led her away to a table and grabbed two glasses of juice for each of them, hoping that might help Ruby with her situation.

Meanwhile, Weiss was finding it increasingly difficult to keep her dignity intact in Jaune's arms. It served her right, she supposed – she had become much humbler since leaving the South Pole, but when it came to Jaune, she could still be exceptionally arrogant. It was only expected that she would suffer the consequences for that, sooner or later.

Weiss acknowledged that, but that didn't make the situation any less degrading.

"So," Jaune said, his voice deceivingly casual. Weiss knew he was having the time of his life. "Are you enjoying the dance?"

"N-no! I am most definitely _not_!" Weiss fixed him with a glare, even as she was brought spinning around him. "Don't let this get to your head! I will admit, you are more adept at this than I had imagined – I will give you that! – yet you would still be left woefully outpaced were I to decide to take this seriously!"

"Okay," Jaune snorted. "I was talking about the dance, as in, the _party_ , but I'm glad you're giving our little waltz so much thought, Snow Angel."

"Don't call me that! And I _don't_ care. I'm only playing along because I don't want to ruin your fun. Rest assured, I will put a stop to this the moment I feel like it," Weiss raised her chin haughtily. "And if you must know, I am indeed enjoying this party. The inspiration for it is dubious, and Ruby did insult the Queen to her face, but as far as royal events go, this one has been… above average."

"Right. And you've attended lots of parties like this?" Jaune asked. "I don't see how that could be true, since you were kinda banished to the South Pole when you were a kid and all that…"

"Your reasoning is correct, but you fail to grasp that, as a princess, I have a natural understanding of such matters," Weiss said. "I would advise you not to think too hard about it. It's all very complicated."

"Of course."

Jaune took her by the waist and spun around, then set her on the floor again. Weiss recovered from the scare and glared up at him, sure that he had done that on purpose to get her off-balance. Oh, he was feeling superior now, but Weiss would make him regret his boorish attitude for weeks to come.

"I get that the party itself is kinda in bad taste," Jaune said. "But it's still good that the Earth Kingdom is going to move against the Fire Nation. I mean, isn't that the whole reason we came here in the first place? To warn the Queen about what the Fire Nation has in store, and also help them plan a course of attack?"

"Yes," Weiss said. "I suppose this party is celebrating our efforts in particular, in a way."

"I'm just glad that things are finally happening. I'm tired of sitting around the house, doing nothing." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm actually looking forward to fighting the Fire Nation again! Even if it's scary… it means we're working to make the world better, right? We're taking fate into our own hands!"

"Yes. And the sooner we put an end to this senseless war, the better," Weiss nodded. "You must miss your family dearly. Once we're done, you'll be able to see them again."

"Strictly speaking, there's nothing stopping me from going back home right now, aside from my integrity," Jaune said. "It's not the same for you. But I guess, with the alliance between the Water Tribe and the Earth Kingdom, we're bound to meet up with your sister - and Neptune too, hopefully!"

"Huh?" Weiss blinked. "Oh, yes. I miss them both. Terribly."

She looked away, feeling awfully guilty all of a sudden. Why was that? It's not like she had forgotten about him completely, she'd just had a lot on her mind already without factoring in a distant boyfriend, from the war, to protecting everyone, being a good waterbending teacher, being a good friend, and…

"Weiss?" Jaune let go of her, looking very amused. "Are you… blushing?"

"What?" Weiss shook her head. "No! How dare you insinuate that! As always, you show yourself to be nothing but an uncouth brute! If this were _my_ palace, I'd have you-

A deafening noise of stone slamming against stone cut her off, shortly followed by a cacophony of screams, angry and scared and warning. The party guests stopped their dances and started running. A woman clashed against Weiss' shoulder, sending her toppling to the floor, but Jaune caught her and brought her back to her feet before she could get trampled by the frenzied crowd.

"What in the blazes- Jaune, get behind me!" Thinking fast, Weiss gestured at a nearby table and brought a ball of mixed juices to float beside her. "I'm not liking this."

"Me too," Jaune looked around warily. "Should we look for Ruby and Pyrrha?"

"In this mess? We'll never find them. Just stay close to me."

* * *

Adam waved his arms, and the twin doors of the great hall swung open, slamming against the wall. He walked in, head held high, and the entirety of the White Fang followed him, more than two hundred faunus in total, all of them armed.

The guards inside reacted nearly immediately, throwing spears and stones at him, but all of the projectiles were stopped before they could even get close to him. He didn't bother to counter-attack – his allies did it for him, taking the guards out in a matter of seconds.

" _EARTH QUEEN GLYNDA GOODWITCH!_ "

His cry was lost in the noise of the panicking crowd. Adam growled in frustration and gestured over his shoulder. The White Fang spread out, brandishing their weapons in an open threat. Guests started to fall, but once the majority realized what was happening, everyone stopped in their tracks – and silence reigned.

"Adam," behind him, Blake whispered, her sword still sheathed. "Are you sure-"

"Earth Queen Glynda Goodwitch! You have a choice! Step forward – or we will make our way towards you!"

For a minute, nobody moved. Then, the crowd started to part, and from amidst them came the Queen "Here I am." She raised her head high, glaring at him with barely-contained fury. "What is the meaning of this?"

"My name is Adam Taurus. We are the faunus of the White Fang," Adam pointed his sword at her. "And we are here to take our rightful place at the throne of the Earth Kingdom."

To her credit, the Queen did not explode in rage, like he'd expected. She stared at him for a moment, then inspected the faunus that now surrounded her and the guests from every corner of the room. Finally, she looked back at him, contemplative

"And why do you believe that is your right?" she asked.

"Under your rule, and the rule of your ancestors, the faunus of the Earth Kingdom have always been at the bottom of society. We, who first built your homes, who first protected you from the Grimm. We are the blood and flesh of the earth, more than you humans could ever hope to be," Adam said. "It is only right that those who contributed most get to rule."

"Historically, the faunus have always been treated as lesser than humans in my kingdom. There is no denying that," Glynda said. "I can't erase the violence my ancestors inflicted on yours. But I have taken strides to heal those past injuries. What you're trying to do will only-"

"Taken strides? Don't make me laugh!" Adam barked. "Your laws mean nothing, Glynda Goodwitch! You sit at your throne, feeling good about yourself, while we bleed at your feet! You aren't healing any wounds, you're casting them aside and forgetting them!"

"I've done all I could." Her eyes narrowed. "You are seeing things through a veil of hatred, young man. Change takes time. _Healing_ takes time. It's unfortunate that you're still suffering, but if we approach this situation in a less _destructive_ manner, I am sure we can find a way to make things better for you and your friends."

"Can we? Am I being unreasonable?"

Adam snapped his fingers. From behind him came the last of the White Fang, dragging with them the bound captain of the Guard and his wife and son. With a gesture, Adam ordered for the Winchesters to be dropped in front of him. The captain struggled and squirmed, shouting against his gag, but stopped when Adam laid the tip of his sword on his shoulder.

"This man serves you. In fact, as I understand, he was handpicked to enter the city guard by yourself when he was barely a man. And under your watch, he eventually became the captain," Adam smirked. "They say you're a wise ruler, Goodwitch, but I have my doubts. Why would someone so wise employ such a wretched excuse of a man?"

"Vultur is a good man. He has served Vale impeccably for twenty-six years," the Queen said, clenching her fists. "I will not have you slander his name under my roof."

"It is most unfortunate then, Your Majesty, that I'm not here to abide by your sensitives," Adam said. "Blake, would you like to say something about our friend here?"

Blake looked at him irritably for a moment, then stepped to his side. She took a glance at the Winchesters, then met eyes with the Queen.

"Your captain isn't the man you think he is. At least I hope that's the case," she said, her tone much gentler compared to Adam's. "What he's done in your name is terrible, but it would be even worse if it were fully in your knowledge."

"What are you talking about?" Glynda asked, giving Vultur a concerned look.

"The captain and his subordinates have been purposefully turning faunus refugees away from the city, leaving them exposed to the conditions and Grimm outside the walls. They've separated families, even beaten those who refused to comply to his rules," Blake told, her voice becoming progressively heavier. "That's only the start. He's done… unspeakable things to the faunus of Vale. People have lost their lives because of him. I almost did!" she paused. "If that's the kind of man you trust, then you have no business ruling over anyone."

The Queen stared at the captain, as if she could get an answer out of him with her very eyes, but he was too concerned with the blade resting inches away from his neck to acknowledge her.

"Those are serious allegations. Rest assured, I will launch a thorough investigation on Winchester and the Guard. If it comes to be that you are telling the truth, I will step down… after the war is over," Glynda declared. "The fate of our country, and the entire world, is in the balance. We cannot falter now."

"More reason to give up the throne to us," Adam said. "What have you accomplished in fifteen years? You've only lost. The White Fang will lead the Earth Kingdom to victory."

"That, we cannot agree on. I will not give up the throne to anyone – and especially not to _you_ ," Glynda said. "Tell your people to put down their arms, surrender peacefully, or we _will_ use force."

"And risk the lives of everyone in this room?" Adam smiled viciously. "My, you really are stone-cold." He tapped his blade to the captain's neck. "You surrender, or we start taking heads, starting with his."

"If you do that, then your words mean nothing, Taurus!" the Queen shouted. "Cease this madness now!"

Adam lifted his blade. "Last chance. Three. Two…"

"Don't you dare! Guards! Take him-"

" _STOP!_ "

The shattering of several plates and glasses echoed throughout the great hall, and when everyone turned to look, they saw the Avatar standing on a table, the lower end of her dress ripped and her feet bare.

"This is _not_ ending like this," Ruby said. "No one's getting hurt, okay? No one's dying! If you both mean what you're saying, then tonight is going to end _peacefully_!" She pointed at the Queen. "Glynda! Are you with me? Can you promise not to attack?"

For a moment, the Queen didn't react at all, stunned by the sudden intervention and the Avatar's request. Then, she let the smallest hint of a smile show, and bowed her head.

"You have my word."

"Good," Ruby turned to the White Fang. "Adam. If you think you're better than her, better than the humans, then show it by not going completely psycho. Let's try and reach a middle-ground. Can you do that?"

Adam scowled at her, but lowered his sword anyway. Ruby sighed and rubbed her forehead, then looked past him, her countenance falling.

"It's really you, Blake," she said tiredly. "Small world, eh?"

"Yeah. I… I guess I should have expected you to be here," Blake replied, conflicted. "I'm… sorry to crash the party?"

"It's okay. I just…" Ruby shrugged. "I had a feeling we'd meet again, but not like this. I don't know, I guess I expected… better."

Blake flinched, Ruby's words hitting like a slap in the face. She looked away, trying to find a response, but her mind was in scrambles all of a sudden.

"Forget it."

Adam raised his sword again, his face twisted with wrath.

" _Woah_!" Ruby yelled, waving her hands in the air. "We had an agreement! Don't go full psycho, remember?!"

"I don't care," Adam said. "The Queen surrenders, or his head comes off."

"No! Come on, everything was going well!" Ruby jumped from her table and landed beside the Queen. "Why won't you just listen to me?!"

"Why would I listen? Because you're the Avatar?" Adam scoffed. "You're just another human trying to keep things as you like them! You want a peaceful solution? There is none!"

"That's not true!" Ruby exclaimed, nearly crying.

"Put down the sword, Taurus!" Glynda shouted.

"I _will_ put down the sword!"

Adam swung down – and midway through, lost his grip and fell forward, with Blake on top of him, her sword buried on the back of his shoulder. He screamed furiously and rolled over, taking off a huge chunk of the floor and slamming it against Blake, swatting her away.

He spun to face the Queen and thrust an arm, but a narrow string of fire penetrated his palm and came out the other side of his hand. Adam fell to his knees, screaming in pain.

Glynda raised her hands, and the floor rose underneath every White Fang member, covering them to their necks. Only Adam remained free, but that mattered little, as Cinder walked up to him and laid a hand on his neck, sending electricity coursing through his body and knocking him out cold.

"I hope you didn't mind my intervention," Cinder said, turning to the Queen.

"It was appreciated," Glynda said. "Everyone. The festivities are over. Have a good night," she waved over her shoulder. "Guards, move the rebels to the dungeons."

The guests left the great hall in troves, nearly stepping over each other. The Queen's soldiers started freeing the White Fang one by one and cuffing them, then leading them away.

A soldier approached Blake and freed her from the Queen's confinement. She sighed and offered her wrists, but before she could be cuffed, Ruby yelled, "Wait! Not her!"

The soldier looked towards the Queen. "Avatar…" Glynda sighed. "Fine. Let her go." She stared at Ruby critically. "She's your responsibility."

"Well, duh," Ruby blinked. "I mean, thanks."

Glynda shook her head in wonder, then walked over to the Winchesters, who were being freed. When Vultur's bindings came off, he immediately tried to stand, but Glynda pushed him back to his knees.

"Captain," she said coldly. "Did you do all those things?"

"What? Your Majesty! No, of course not!" he yelled. "I've only done what you instructed me to do. I'm your loyal servant. Those animals, they took me from my home, my wife, my son-"

"I've heard enough," Glynda dismissed him with a gesture. "Take him to the dungeons. As for his son and wife, give them a room in the castle. I will be questioning them all soon."

The guards took the Winchesters away, Vultur screaming all the while. Paying him no mind, the Queen went to talk to General Hazel.

Ruby rubbed her eyes, and was surprised to find there were a few tears lingering there. She wiped them away quickly, then looked up to find Cinder still standing nearby, staring intently at the unconscious Adam.

"Uhm… Hey," Ruby said meekly. "Thanks for the help…"

Cinder didn't as much as look at her. "You could have done more." She walked away, leaving the room.

Ruby frowned. _Somehow_ , that had gone worse than she had expected. It was probably better off this way. Even if Cinder wanted to fix things between them, Ruby wasn't sure that would be a good thing.

"Ruby!" Weiss walked up to her and embraced her, knocking the air out of Ruby's lung. "You absolute moron!"

"Huh? What did I do wrong this time?!" Ruby whined.

"Nothing," Weiss stepped back, smiling despite herself. "You're just impossible."

Jaune caught up to Weiss and gave Ruby two thumbs-up. "Impressive mediator work, Avatar. Almost perfect, until the crazy guy went… well, crazy, but that was kinda out of your control."

"Thanks. I thought it was going to get bad," Ruby said. "Good thing Blake was there!"

Standing a little distance away from them, Blake couldn't look more uncomfortable. Weiss put her hands on her hips, scanning the faunus up and down repeatedly.

"I _suppose_ we should be grateful," the princess said. "Though I question why she was there in the first place, and her choice of company."

"Look, it's… it's very complicated, okay?" Blake said.

"How complicated could it be?" Weiss questioned. "You have a friend. Said friend, by happenstance, turns out to be a lunatic who wants to murder the Queen. You help said friend get _veeery_ close to making his dream come true," she scoffed. "Doesn't seem all that complicated to me."

"Weiss! Cut if off," Ruby admonished. "I'm sure Blake has very good reasons for everything. She can tell us later, or whenever she feels comfortable."

"Oh, great. We're friends with her now," Weiss shook her head. "Because that worked out so well with the last addition to the team."

"Weiss, come on. Yeah, Blake was friends with Adam, but she stabbed him, so she's okay," Ruby raised a finger. "I realize that sounds very wrong, _but_ … Yeah I've got no defense for that. We're taking her home."

"Excuse me? I'm not some stray cat," Blake said, crossing her arms. "Don't I get a say in this?"

Weiss smiled at her. "You can stay in the dungeons if you prefer."

"I don't think you've got any other options, Blake," Jaune said. "Sorry."

Blake pursed her lips. She did have another option, but… No, she wasn't sure about that. And, thinking about it, the dungeons sounded less miserable than that.

"If you insist," she said. "But only until things are cleared up. I don't want to be a bother."

"You won't be!" Ruby exclaimed cheerfully.

Jaune looked around them, confused. "Hey, where's Pyrrha?"

* * *

Cinder stopped walking down the hallway to her room, recognizing the footsteps that had been following her since leaving the great hall were still there.

"Is something the matter?" Cinder asked.

Pyrrha tilted her head, one clear message written in her eyes.

 _I'm watching you_.

* * *

"And this is your bed. We've got a pillow here. That's where you rest your head when you go to sleep. And the blankets are in that closet over there. Those are to keep you warm, but you don't have to use them if it's too hot already… We've got extras you can borrow too. And, uh, you can open and close this window all you like, but if you keep it open there are insects outside soooo…"

Blake nodded. "Thanks, Ruby. But I know how bedrooms work."

"Uh, yeah. I was just making sure," Ruby laughed nervously. "It's just that I didn't use beds myself for fifteen years. Also, I don't know how to do small talk."

"I sympathize," Blake said, and then the two of them stood in silence for a good thirty-seven seconds. "…Thanks."

"Oh you're welcome!" Ruby smiled at her. "You go and feel at home, Blake. We eat breakfast early, but Jaune's always sleeping late so you can join him if you want. It's up to you," she paused. "So, yeah, uh, I'm probably gonna leave now."

She made for the door, but Blake stopped her.

"Wait. I… I really am thankful," Blake said. "You didn't have to help me with the Queen, or with any of this. Frankly, this is almost too much. I don't deserve any of this."

"Well, I don't believe in that _deserve_ stuff. As long as you're a good person – and I know you are, Blake, end of discussion – you get all the help you could ever use," Ruby said.

"That's… very gracious of you," Blake frowned. "How can you be so sure I'm not taking advantage of you?"

Ruby was silent for a moment, then she just shrugged. "Weiss will take care of you if you do."

Now _that_ was an interesting answer. Interesting, and a little disturbing to boot.

"Ruby… I can't thank you enough, not with words. So if it's okay with you…" Blake took a deep breath. "I'd like to take you somewhere tomorrow."

Ruby's eyes went wide. "Wait, are you asking me on a date?!"

"No! It's not like that," Blake said. "I want you to… meet someone. I think you'd like them."

"Well, as long as they're not criminally insane and the others can come along, sure! I'd love to!"

Blake nodded. She had almost been hoping that Ruby would refuse, but since she had made the suggestion, she had to go through with it.

"Good night, then," Ruby said. "See you tomorrow."

"See you."

Ruby closed the door, leaving Blake alone in her new bedroom.

She tried to fall asleep, but instead she stayed up all night thinking about what she would say to Yang.


	39. Sparks Before the Fire

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Nineteen: Sparks Before the Fire**

* * *

Sun's restaurant was busy. But not just normal busy. It was, as he had put it himself, _crazy busy_. Yang, on the other hand, was calling the situation for what it was – complete and utter chaos.

The restaurant had grown quite the clientele over the months, and lately it had been common for them to run out of tables to seat people at, but today was unlike anything she had seen before. A line had formed outside, a line of hungry, eager, _impatient_ people, and when she'd gone to check on its size, she hadn't been able to see its end around the street corner.

It was madness. A few weeks ago, Yang would have embraced it with open arms. But now… now she only wished she was anywhere else.

"Order for table fourteen!" Sun came marching out of the kitchen, carrying a tray of food in his hands. "You take it!" He turned to Yang and handed over the tray. " _Go go go go go_ -"

"Woah, settle, I was just catching my breath!" Yang exclaimed.

"I don't pay you to catch your breath! I haven't taken a breath in forty-five minutes myself – a boss has to set an example!" Sun said, puffing his cheeks and squinting his eyes.

"That doesn't even make sense. You'd be dead, Sun." Yang sighed. "Whatever. I'm on it… _boss_."

"That's the spirit!" Sun clapped his hands. "Now _go go go go go go go_ -"

Yang walked away, leaving him to his antics. If it were any other day, she would have given him a piece of her mind for being so obnoxious, but she realized he was just stressed because of the situation. She would cut him some slack, just this once. Plus, she didn't feel she had the energy to deal with him today.

She approached table fourteen and set down the tray, showing the best smile she could muster to the couple sitting there. "Two Scorching Scarlets, fresh off the grill, and four bottles of cool water. Enjoy!"

"Four bottles?" The man tilted his head confusedly. "We ordered two glasses, that's it."

"Oh, they're on the house. Trust me, you're gonna need the cool water," Yang said. "There's a reason those are called _Scorching_ , ya know."

"Sounds exciting!" The woman smiled at her. "And are those our fries?"

"Yep. Sorry, I forgot about those." Yang shrugged. "Busy day."

The man nodded sympathetically at her, then took a fry off the basket and ate it. His face scrunched a bit, and he coughed politely. "I think they're a little… frozen."

Yang's eyes widened. "Oh no! I'm so sorry. The staff's so overworked, they must have forgotten – never mind, I'll get this fixed right away!"

She took the basket with the fries and hurried away, walking into the kitchen. She tried to approach the chefs at the grills, but they were so busy, they didn't even notice she was there. Yang considered yelling, but she didn't want to be a bother. Maybe she could fix the fries herself. She eyed the machine, but just that brief look at the grease and the smell of it made her stomach queasy. No way she was getting anywhere close to that monstrosity. Where had Sun even got something like that?

Yang looked around the room, furrowing her brow. Nobody was looking at her. The fries only needed a little heating. Maybe, just maybe…

She put the basket down on a counter and, after taking another look at her surroundings, held a hand just above the fries. Concentrating, she reached for that familiar feeling at the pit of the stomach – that faint, smoldering memory – and called on it.

For an instant, she thought she felt a spark of _something_ – but she looked down at her hand, and the fries below it, and there was no visible change. Yang lowered her hand onto the counter, balling her fingers into a fist. A shudder rocked her back and shoulders, but she took a deep breath and kept her head up.

"Yang?" Sun appeared beside her, looking as frantic as before. "You okay? Did you get that order to the right table?"

"Yup." Yang blinked hard. "The fries are frozen."

"Uh, yeah, that's how they're supposed to be," Sun said, looking at her like she had gone mental. "Here, let me get that for you."

He took the basket, walked over to the machine, and poured down the fries. A hiss filled the room as waves of heat escaped the machine. Yang took a sharp breath.

"Hey, you're… you're not gonna cry, right?" Sun gulped. "Come on, Yang, the fries had a good life! And they had a good end too, together with their loved ones and all! Please don't cry!"

"I don't care about the fries, Sun! That's not – what even gave you the impression that I was gonna cry?!" Yang huffed. "I'm fine. Stop being dumb."

"That's a hard ask, friend," Sun said. "Look, just go home. I can see you're not okay, even if you're too proud to admit it."

"But you need me," Yang objected. "Today's insane, you can't afford to-"

"I'm not listening. _Go go go go go go go go_ -"

Yang raised a hand helplessly, but Sun just kept going, not breaking eye contact with her for an instant. Sighing, she took off her work apron and handed it over. "Thanks, Sun. You're a great guy."

"Oh, stop it, you." Sun waved a hand at her face. "This is what friends are for – taking care of each other and all that jazz. Now excuse me for a moment, I think the people outside are revolting and, yep, they just broke down the front door!"

He ran from the kitchen, nearly tripping over himself.

Yang looked down at her hands. "Yeah." She sighed. "Great thing to have… Friends…"

* * *

"That was a fantastic pancake, Pyrrha! If I knew you were such a great cook, I would have asked you to make something ages ago!" Ruby burped. "Man, my friends are so awesome!"

Pyrrha blushed. "Oh, please, it was nothing. I was only-"

"Nope! You are not deflecting the compliment, you're taking it, and you're taking it to the grave!" Ruby yelled, slamming a hand down onto the dinner table. "Honestly, Pyrrha. You're so difficult sometimes."

Pyrrha blinked a few times, taken aback by Ruby's energetic response. "I'm… glad you enjoyed it?"

"There. That's much better." Ruby sank contently in her chair. "I want a repeat next week. And every week after that."

"I can do that," Pyrrha said. "Whatever makes you happy!"

She giggled a little, covering her mouth, and Ruby couldn't pretend to not be a little unsettled. Pyrrha had been doing stuff like that all morning – giggling, singing under her breath, spinning and jumping as she walked… It wasn't like she was a gloomy person usually, but this mood was far from normal. Something was afoot, Ruby knew it.

As she considered asking Pyrrha directly about it, Weiss entered the house through the front door, carrying a few scrolls under her arm. She looked around, sniffing the air, then approached the dinner table.

"What's that smell?" Weiss looked down at Ruby's plate. "I can't tell from this, seeing as how you gobbled everything up like an anteater-frog, as usual."

"Pyrrha made pancakes," Ruby said. "They're delicious."

"I saved some for you, Weiss!" Pyrrha said. "I thought you might appreciate the change."

"You thought right. Thank you very much, Pyrrha," Weiss said. "But what's the occasion? Does it have something to do with that smile on your face?" She raised an eyebrow. "Not to judge, but it is a little strange, considering we almost witnessed a bloodbath and the execution of a queen yesterday."

"Oh, Weiss, you always know how to cheer up a crowd," Ruby said.

Weiss smiled at her. "Thank you!"

"If you must know…" Pyrrha looked away coyly. "I _might_ be over the moon right now because I _might_ have asked Jaune on a date and he _might_ have said yes… and it _might_ be happening in a matter of- oh here he comes!"

Pyrrha ran to hide behind a shell-shocked Weiss as Jaune walked out of the hallway, looking very uncomfortable. He waved awkwardly at them, then pointed at the front door. "I'll be… uh… waiting outside."

No one said a word as he slowly edged away. Pyrrha peered at Jaune over Weiss' shoulder, only fully standing once he was out the door. She clapped twice and did a little jump, blushing as she turned her attention back to her female companions.

"Uh…" Ruby scratched her head, not knowing what to say. "Congrats?"

"Thank you very much, Ruby," Pyrrha said, sighing contently. "I know I'm acting weird right now, but you can't _imagine_ the relief. All these months, and he didn't have a clue I liked him! And he hit on pretty much every girl we crossed paths with! It was just so…" She growled. "… _Frustrating_! But all that's over now. Jaune's _mine_."

"…Congrats again?" Ruby laughed lightly. "Seriously, though, I'm happy you're happy, Pyrrha. Just try and slow down a little, yeah? I love you and Jaune both. I don't wanna see either of you get hurt."

"Don't worry, Ruby," Pyrrha said. "I'll take good care of him."

She smiled at Weiss, nodded, then skipped to the door and went outside. Weiss stood for a moment, waving her hands in front of her as if trying to solve some invisible equation.

"So… that was weird! But funny, too!" Ruby said. "Good funny, though. I'm happy for them!"

"…I'll go get my pancakes," Weiss muttered, dragging her feet on the way to the kitchen.

Ruby ate what was left of her pancake, silently wondering at how quickly things had changed. Pyrrha finally gaining the courage to ask Jaune out, and him accepting. The Earth Kingdom taking the initiative in the war. And they had a new friend in Blake.

Everything was different…

Except for her, she supposed. She was still little old Ruby, set in her pure-hearted ways, with the same doubts as always. It was a bittersweet feeling, to look around at a different world and find yourself unchanged. Was that a good thing?

"Morning."

Ruby looked up and saw Blake sat down at the other side of the table. She was so quiet, Ruby thought she might have just woken up. But she didn't know Blake that well – she might have been awake for hours already, just waiting in her room. Ruby wouldn't fault her for being nervous.

"Morning!" Ruby replied enthusiastically. "Did you have a good night's sleep?"

"More or less. I've had a lot on my mind." Blake's eyes wandered away from her. "Are we still doing that thing today?"

"Hmm? Oh, you mean meeting that friend of yours?" Ruby nodded. "Sure. When are we leaving?"

"I don't know. Now? It's up to you."

Ruby peered at Blake, realizing she looked very tense for some reason, and Ruby didn't think it was just because of the new environment. It was almost as if Blake didn't want to go. But hadn't she been the one to suggest the trip in the first place?

Weiss came back from the kitchen, carrying a glass of water in her hands. She took a long sip, fixing her eyes on Blake, then looked at Ruby. "What are we talking about?"

"Blake wants to take us somewhere to meet someone," Ruby said. "Right, Blake?"

"Someone who?" Weiss twisted her nose. "Another close _friend_ of yours?"

For a moment, Blake looked like she might give Weiss a response just as sharp, but then she eased her shoulders and nodded. "Something of the sort. You'll find this one much easier to get along with," she said. "Shall we leave?"

Ruby started getting up, but stopped when Weiss raised a hand. "Not to be a spoilsport, but I'm afraid we'll have to postpone this meeting," the princess said. "You and I have matters to see to in the palace, Blake."

In response to Blake's confused stare, Weiss walked back to the kitchen and shortly returned with the scrolls she'd entered the house with. She dropped them on the table and gestured at them.

"Summons from the Queen's council," Weiss said. "They want my input on some final documents regarding the co-efforts with the Water Tribe. As for you… They're conducting an investigation on the White Fang, and you're… well…"

"That's unfortunate," Blake said. "But I see no reason to refuse. If my cooperation is necessary to correct the wrongs of the White Fang, then I will oblige."

"Wonderful," Weiss said. "We'll go meet your friend tomorrow, then. We'll take Pyrrha and Jaune along too. The more the merrier… and the safer."

Ruby expected Blake to protest, but the faunus didn't seem all that upset. In fact, she looked almost relieved.

"Wait a second," Ruby said. " _I_ don't need to go to the palace. So how about I go alone? You did say it was me you wanted to meet your friend, Blake. I just invited everyone else along."

"You're right," Blake said, her lips curving into a slight smile. "This is very important. I think you'll realize why when you meet her."

"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?" Ruby sighed. "I want to yell at you for keeping the suspense, but it's only getting me more excited! So where do I need to go?"

"Hey! Don't get ahead of yourself," Weiss interjected, her voice sharp as a dagger. "You're just going to go off to who knows where, to meet who knows who, without anyone to back you up? Forget about Blake's questionable choice in company – you know there are people out there who'd love to get their hands on you, Ruby!" She shook her head. "No, you're not going anywhere. You can wait one day."

Ruby bowed her head, deflated. If only Weiss' reasoning wasn't so sound. Ruby wasn't a child, she could certainly wait a little. It was the responsible thing to do.

"I think if she wants to go, she can and should," Blake said. "You're not the master of her."

Ruby looked at Blake, startled that she would be so blunt with Weiss all of a sudden. Weiss seemed just as shocked.

"Excuse me? Who are you to say anything about-" Weiss pursed her lips, her own anger causing her to fumble over herself. "I am not her master. I don't pretend to be! Am I a villain for caring about her safety?"

"There's a fine line between looking after someone, and controlling them," Blake said. "Ruby can make her own decisions."

Weiss took in a deep breath, then turned to Ruby and stared at her expectantly. Blake's gaze was much less severe, but it did nothing to ease Ruby's nerves.

"I-I… wanna go anyways?" Ruby gulped. "I can look after myself… and I'll be very careful, Weiss. Promise."

For a moment, Weiss said nothing. Then, she made a show of shrugging her shoulders. "It's your life." She glared at Blake. "I'll meet you outside."

"You can go ahead if you want," Blake said, not a trace of malice in her voice.

"Oh, no. I'd hate to abandon you so. What kind of friend does something that that?" Weiss waited for a response. When none came, she humphed and marched out of the house, her chin held high all the while.

Blake stared at the door for a moment, then turned to Ruby and took one of the scrolls on the table. "I'll write down the directions. Do you have a pen?"

Ruby nodded mutely and went to get what Blake asked. She felt a little bad for having rejected Weiss, but at the same time… for some reason, she felt she wouldn't be regretting it anytime soon.

* * *

"Dad, I've come to a conclusion," Yang said. "Life sucks, in like, every way."

Taiyang made a non-committal noise as he sat down on the couch beside her. As soon as he did, Yang huffed loudly and fell sideways, plopping down onto his lap. Taiyang raised his hands exasperatedly, but decided to just let her be. Less grief for the both of them.

"Maybe it's not life that sucks," Yang mumbled. "Maybe it's just me."

"Didn't we agree that you would stop moping and do something productive instead?" Taiyang said. "You have all this energy – direct it somewhere good."

"That's easier said than done," Yang said. "I've been trying my hardest, Dad. I really have. But every day, it's just like… I don't know." She sighed. "I'm just totally _spent_."

"I see." Taiyang brushed her hair with a hand. "But that's fine. You realize that, don't you? Some wounds only time can heal."

Yang nodded. He was right, obviously. The only problem was, patience wasn't exactly her forte. And the more Yang tried to rid herself of the darkness that was ailing her, failing every time, the longer it would last. The worse she would feel.

A knock on the front door snapped her from her thoughts. She looked at her father worriedly. The only visitor they ever got was Sun, but he always warned beforehand.

"I'll get it," Taiyang whispered. He got up, shaking a hand a bit to produce a small flame hidden by his palm, and left for the entrance hall.

Yang sat up, wondering who could be at the door at this time. Hopefully it was Sun. But if it wasn't him… then a fight was surely about to break out. It was good her father was the one taking the lead. She wasn't that useful in a fight currently, not without a weapon at least.

Maybe… maybe it was Blake?

Yang shook her head. It had better not be Blake. There would be definitely be a fight if that were the case, and it would be quite a big one.

She heard a gasp, then a series of giggles followed by a _thump_ sound, like a body crashing against another. Yang jumped up and sprinted to the front door. "Dad, what's-"

Ruby was there, her arms wrapped Taiyang like her life depended on it. She was a mess of emotions, giggling once for every tear that trailed down her cheeks. Taiyang was in a similar state, too happy to believe what was happening.

Yang stood frozen.

"I can't believe it. I-I didn't know – you're here too," Ruby sobbed. "You were here all this time. And you're my…" She looked over his shoulder. "Yang!"

Yang didn't even see her coming. Suddenly she was stumbling backwards, struggling to keep on her feet. Ruby buried her head on her chest, muffling the sounds of her crying.

"Sister…"

Yang crossed eyes with her father, absolutely lost as to what to do. All the times she had imagined how this reunion would go, she had never thought she would feel so… numb. What was happening?

Taiyang smiled at her and nodded. Hesitantly, Yang hugged Ruby back. The younger girl melted in her arms, her cries slowly fading into a joyful silence.

* * *

Blake would have preferred if Weiss talked, because her silence was no respite. If the princess had been wary of her before, now she was downright antagonistic, to a point that it was actually making Blake uncomfortable. She didn't think her interference back at the house had been that serious – either she had overstepped some boundaries she was unaware of, or Weiss was more sensitive than she let on.

When they got to the palace, General Hazel was at the entrance to greet them. "Princess Schnee. The War Council awaits you in the strategy chamber. Shall I get a servant to guide you?"

"Thank you, but I'm familiar with the place," Weiss said. "I'll be going now." She shot Blake a cold glance, then shook her head and stormed off.

"As for you…" Hazel turned to look at Blake. "I'm in charge of the White Fang investigation. I'd like you to come with me to the dungeons, if you will."

Blake raised an eyebrow at the request, but she didn't let her apprehension show past that. She didn't know the man personally, but just his size and the severity of his expression were enough to tell her she did not want to get on his bad side.

"Lead the way."

* * *

"So, where are we going again?" Jaune asked. "A fancy restaurant, you said?"

Pyrrha smiled back at him. "I'm not ruining the surprise, Jaune. Just trust me, okay?"

Jaune nodded. He honestly wouldn't have said a thing if she'd revealed they were going to a junkyard, or the sewers. Just the concept of going on a date with her – with Pyrrha! – was already so outlandish, everything else didn't hold any real meaning in comparison.

Although, the fact that they were seemingly moving away from the more populated sections of the Middle Ring was a small comfort. If he was going to embarrass himself, he'd rather do it far away from civilization. That did bring the alternate problem of them being completely alone, but if he had to pick his poison, that would most definitely be his choice.

A date with Pyrrha. Jaune pinched himself. Nope, still awake.

They started walking up a hill. "I hope this isn't too much," Pyrrha said. "I know I kinda sprang this on you. We're going a little fast. But I wanted only the best for us, so…"

They reached the top of the hill. There was a single tree ahead of them, and below it a tablecloth spread on the grass, with soft foods laying on it. The shade protected it from the sun, and the heights allowed a cool breeze to approach them without obstruction.

"What do you think?" Pyrrha asked, looking at him anxiously.

"I, uh…" Jaune was too stunned to form a proper answer. He gestured at the setup, then threw his arms upward.

Pyrrha's face dropped. "It was too much," she said. "N-nevermind, then. We can find a restaurant. A simple café, or… anything you'd like. Or w-we could just drop the idea altogether! That's fine too!"

Jaune had never seen Pyrrha so nervous before. She was stuttering! It made him feel better about himself, but more than that, he struggled to find a way to comfort her.

"Pyrrha, it's okay. Relax, will you?" He smiled at her. "I love this. When did you-"

"Oh, I woke up early. I didn't stay up until the sun rose preparing this, definitely not!" Pyrrha replied hastily. "…Let's sit?"

Jaune sat down on one end of the cloth, and Pyrrha took her position at the other. She looked at him for a moment, then abruptly turned her sight towards the food, her cheeks turning crimson. Jaune would have laughed, if he wasn't so nervous himself.

"So, this is awkward… And saying that didn't help in any way." Jaune rubbed his neck self-consciously. "You know what never fails to make me comfortable?"

Pyrrha's posture lightened, her lips parting in a grin. "Eating."

"Pyrrha… that's the exact answer." Jaune leant back, feeling the tension evaporate off his body. Why had he been so nervous?

* * *

The dungeon was as unpleasant as Blake had expected. That was one thing she knew was universal – a place for prisoners was not a place for niceness. The palace's dungeon might be bigger than most, and the wardens might not be so cruel, but the thought of being confined there was terrifying nonetheless.

That was what dominated Blake's mind as she descended into the humid underground, so strikingly different from the dusty, almost arid palace above. General Hazel followed behind her, carrying a torch to light the way. One touch, one sudden movement, and Blake would have no qualm using teeth and nail to escape from the place.

They reached the bottom of the stairs. Hazel stepped around Blake and continued onward, forcing her to keep up, lest she have to find her own way in the darkness. Faunus or not, that would be a pain.

Things got even more unnerving when they started to pass by the cells, nearly all filled with familiar faces from the White Fang. A few cries rose from them, calling out to her in rage and disgust. Blake tried to remain unaffected. She might have had a role in their imprisonment, but if anyone was to blame for the current state of the White Fang, it was Adam. She wouldn't be shamed for doing the right thing.

Speaking of Adam – there he was, at the very end of the dungeon, in a cell all of his own. But before they acknowledged each other, Blake's gaze went to the other person standing nearby, who she quickly recognized her as the firebender that had took Adam down the previous night.

Blake made to reach for her sword, stopping midway through when she realized how she might be misinterpreted. _Cinder_. The name had been mentioned several times last night by Ruby's friends, often with quite some anger behind it – except by Ruby herself, and that spoke volumes too. They had history, that much was clear.

"Fall." General Hazel stopped, his eyes falling severely on the firebender. "I don't recall granting you access to the dungeon."

"That's because I asked the Queen herself. It took a bit of persuasion, I'll admit, but here I am," Cinder said, joining her hands behind her back. "My apologies, General. I didn't mean to undermine your authority."

She smiled at him. His expression didn't soften in the slightest.

"You have quite the prisoner here. He's got some… interesting ideas." Cinder turned to look at Adam. "Unfortunately, he's not very willing to share those with me. I think he's still a little _shocked_ after yesterday's events."

Adam fixed her with a glare, but that was the only reaction she got from him. Cinder sighed dramatically and finally turned to look at Blake. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity for a moment before she offered a hand.

"Blake, was it? Cinder Fall. I'm a fan of your work."

"You are?" Blake said. "And what work is that?"

"Picking sides," Cinder said simply. "I suppose most people don't think very highly of people like us, but they don't know the courage it takes to stand for what you truly believe in. You have my utmost respect."

"Thanks." Blake didn't shake her hand.

Whatever Cinder thought of her, she didn't let it show. "I'd love to stick around and rub dear Adam's defeat in his face some more, but I'm afraid I have an appointment with the Queen," she said. "General. Blake."

She nodded to each of them, then walked away, conjuring a flame to guide her way. Blake watched her go for a moment before turning to Adam. Their eyes met, and her whole body shuddered from the intensity of his gaze.

"Now this is a surprise. Not a particularly pleasant one, though," he said. "Not with these bars between us."

"You reap what you sow, Adam," Blake said.

"Wow. So aggressive already," Adam said. "And here I was thinking this was going to be a touching conversation."

"I'm not here for you, if that's what you thought." Blake looked at Hazel. "What do you need to know?"

"Get him to talk about the tunnels. I want to know how he discovered them, and how expansive they are… Anything," the general said. "You'll fill me in later. A pressing matter just came up."

Blake tensed up. "You're just going to leave me here?"

"You'll be protected." Hazel gestured to the guards standing attention near every cell. "I will be back in an hour."

He walked away without another word, the ground shaking with every step he took.

"So." Adam smiled. "It's just the two of us now."

* * *

It took quite some time for Ruby to calm down. When her trembling stopped and she became able to speak again, Taiyang sat her down beside Yang on the couch, then took his seat on the armchair opposite them. Silence still followed afterwards, as no one knew what to say. Nothing could have prepared them for this.

"This… this is something, alright," Taiyang said, appearing exhausted.

"Right?" Ruby released a lengthy breath. "Sorry for just _showing_ _up_ like this. If I had known you were here before…"

"You would have come even sooner, and we would have been just as unprepared." Taiyang chuckled.

Ruby looked at him and smiled. Her shoulders tensed a bit as she felt that previous euphoria threaten to make a return, but she steeled herself and raised her head.

"This is like… the best thing ever," she managed to say somehow. "I almost can't believe it. You're here with me – father and sister." She perked up. "Is it okay if I call you Dad? No, wait, don't answer! I'm gonna cry if you say anything!"

"It's fine," Taiyang said. "You can call me anything you want, Ruby."

" _Gah_!" Ruby covered her ears. "What did I just tell you?!"

Taiyang leaned back and laughed. Smiling, Ruby turned to face Yang, who had been very quiet thus far. Noticing the attention, Yang shifted a little and gave a tentative smile in return.

"So, Ruby…" she said. "How long have you known?"

"That we're related?" Ruby thought for a moment. "Always, kinda."

" _What_?"

"Well, Avatar Ozpin knew, so technically I knew since I was born," Ruby explained. "But if we're talking when _I_ knew… It was after we came back from the North Pole. There was a magic tunnel, some spooky visions, and then Ozpin took me through a tour of the past."

"That… doesn't answer much of anything," Yang said.

"Well how long have _you_ known, then?" Ruby asked. "Please tell me you didn't know while you were trying to capture me."

"No, I also learned after the North Pole. Dad and uncle Qrow told me."

"Uncle Qrow… I wish he were here too." Ruby frowned. "Have you guys seen him lately? He disappeared after the battle at the Rift, and I've been worried about him since."

"The last we saw him, he was fighting his sister," Taiyang said. "He saved my neck. Literally." He looked at Ruby's confused face and nodded. "There's a lot we need to catch up on. But first – what brought you here, Ruby? I doubt this was a happy coincidence."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot about that," Ruby said. "A friend of mine told me to come here. She said she was friends with you too, and I guess she knows we're related. Her name's Blake?"

Yang's face lit up with surprise. A second later, however, she closed up, a coldness taking over her eyes, and she leaned away from Ruby indifferently.

"Blake. I didn't know you two had met, Ruby," Taiyang said, smiling softly. "Did you know, Yang?"

"No." Yang shrugged. "What a surprise."

"We haven't seen Blake in a while now." Taiyang turned his attention back to Ruby. "She's doing well, I hope?"

"Yeah. I mean, she got caught up with some bad people, but that worked out fine in the end," Ruby said. "She was going to come here with me, actually, but she had some business in the palace. Bummer."

"The _palace_?" Taiyang raised an eyebrow curiously.

Ruby looked up at the ceiling, suddenly realizing that maybe it wasn't her place to be telling people about Blake's life. But Yang and Taiyang were family, _and_ Blake was friends with them too. Maybe it wasn't so bad, then.

"The Queen threw a dance at the palace yesterday night, and midway through a bunch of rebel faunus showed up. They call themselves the White Fang. Blake was with them, but she turned to our side," Ruby said. "Things were scary there for a while, but we managed to stop anything bad from happening."

"The White Fang… That sounds like quite the tale," Taiyang mused. "I'm glad no one got hurt."

Ruby nodded. "How did _you_ meet Blake, though?"

As he opened his mouth to answer, Yang got up and walked away nonchalantly, going out the front door. They caught a glimpse of her on the porch outside, then she vanished from sight entirely.

Ruby looked at Taiyang, and was surprised to find herself trembling. "Did… Did I say something wrong?"

"Yang's been going through some rough times lately," Taiyang said. "It's nothing to do with you."  
Somehow, Ruby doubted that. She sank a little on the couch, fiddling with the end of her cloak anxiously. Maybe it was best she left now before she made things worse. Next time, she'd bring the whole gang. Yeah, that sounded much easier.

She felt a warmth brush against her cheek, and she looked up to find Taiyang sitting beside her, a comforting smile on his lips. Her heart fluttered.

"…Thanks, Dad."

* * *

Weiss signed the last document with a flourish and put her pen down. She sat still for a moment, watching small ink drops fall from the tip of the pen, staining the table. She was too distracted to care. Maybe it was careless of her to officialize such important matters when her mind wasn't quite there, but it was too late to worry about that now.

For the life of her, Weiss couldn't remember the last time she had been in such a state. Her life was very often a complicated mess, but she had learned to navigate it with grace and thoughtfulness. See a problem – find the solution – take notes and move on. It was that simple.

Except there was no problem to be solved this time, and still she found herself stumped. Maybe she was taking on too much responsibility by herself. Maybe the awful knowledge that further war was to soon come was getting to her.

Maybe she was refusing to see what was right in front of her.

Weiss looked sideways to the letter that had arrived just this morning, addressed to her. Winter was to arrive at the coast in the coming week, accompanied by two dozen ships from the North Pole. It wasn't a terribly large number, but that was easily made up for by the warriors they transported – the tribe's finest.

Weiss forced a smile onto her lips. She was excited to see her sister after so long, that was no lie. And the Earth Kingdom would greatly appreciate the added forces…

She brushed her cheek. There really was no reason to be anxious about it.

Deciding it was time she moved on from such mindless idling, Weiss got up and started neatly arranging the documents to be handed back to the council. As she did, the door opened, and a servant looked into the strategy room.

"Princess Schnee. Apologies for the interruption, and the lateness of the councilmembers," he said. "Somehow, I have failed to find any of them."

Weiss wasn't surprised. Even the stuffy councilmembers of Vale grew weary of these endless meetings and signings. It was a little unusual for all of them to be absent at once, but the war preparations were practically done.

"What about the Queen?" she asked, not looking up from her papers. "It was my assumption that she was going to be here."

"I'm afraid Her Majesty is also missing," the servant said. "She's neither in her chambers nor the throne room. Perhaps she's somewhere outside the palace, but…"

Now _that_ was odd. It wasn't like the Queen to disappear without an explanation. And after what had occurred yesterday…

"No matter," Weiss said. "Do me a favor and get these papers to General Hazel, please."

The servant took the documents and, after a brief bow to her, left the room. Weiss waited for his steps to fade in the hallway, then felt for the waterskin on her belt. Terrible fashion and etiquette, but she preferred that to being unarmed, and she was glad she thought that way now.

Maybe she was being paranoid. Regardless, Weiss would not be caught off-guard.

* * *

The food was good. Well, it tasted good, at least. It did nothing to the knot Pyrrha felt on her stomach, but she figured nothing as simple as an apple pie could ever help with that. But she was happy Jaune was happy.

"Alright. I'm just gonna be straight with you, Pyrrha," he said, rubbing his belly contently. "I had no idea what to expect from this, but _wow_ , would it have been hard to come up with something better. Excellent work all around!" He gave her a thumbs-up. "Also, where did you buy these pies? Paradise? Don't lie to me – it was paradise."

"Oh, it's from a little place near the house, actually," Pyrrha said timidly. "It's a family business, I think, and these are their signature product."

"Hmm. I'll believe it when I see it," Jaune said skeptically. "Maybe on a second date…?"

He wiggled his eyebrows at her, looking absolutely goofy, though it was up in the air whether that was intended or not. Pyrrha stifled a giggle and opened her mouth to answer – only to close it immediately and turn her head away, the knot in her stomach feeling even heavier all of a sudden.

She realized how that looked when she saw Jaune deflate by the corner of her vision. He looked down at his plate and fingered it idly, pushing it away inch by inch. His eyes flickered back to her anxiously, only to flee again the next second.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "That was too forward."

"Oh, no, no it wasn't! It was just forward enough!" Pyrrha said. "Of course we can go on a second date! And since you'll be choosing the location next time, we can go to that place."

"You kinda just chose for me," Jaune noted blankly.

"Well, uh… somewhere else, then. It's your choice…"

They sat in silence for a moment. Jaune ran a hand through his head tiredly, only to realize it was dirty with breadcrumbs and filling from the pies. He shook his head in an attempt to clean his hair, then wiped his hand on his shirt, leaving an unsightly smirch. Jaune groaned in dismay.

"Look, Pyrrha, I totally get it if you wanna end things here. Not that we even _started_ anything," he said plainly. "I don't want you to feel like we have to keep doing this. We are perfectly okay as friends."

"But I _do_ want a second date, and a third, and…" Pyrrha stopped talking. She wrung her hands on her lap and put on a brave face. "It's okay if _you_ don't feel the same way, Jaune."

Jaune almost ruined his hair again, stopping himself short just as his hand was about to make contact. "I do feel the same way. _If_ you're feeling the way you _say_ you're feeling," he said with difficulty. "You _looked_ happy, Pyrrha, and you sounded just the same, but I know you too well. I can tell when something's off, and today you've been kind of a mess…" He slapped himself in the forehead. "That sounded bad – you're amazing, Pyrrha, you always are. What I'm saying is, I'm worried."

Pyrrha chose not to mention the purple smudge on his forehead. Though she had a great urge to wipe it for him, it really didn't feel like the right time for it. _And_ she was kinda busy with the storm going on inside her head.

"I didn't mean to make you worry. I thought I was holding myself well," she said. "You're right, I am a mess. To be honest, this is all very overwhelming to me. I don't have any experience with boys, and I wanted to make sure you had a good time. If I ruined things…"

"There's always next time. And you should know I have very low standards by now," Jaune said. The ease with which he made that last statement was remarkable. "You do know you don't have to be perfect at everything, right?"

Pyrrha frowned. "So I _was_ trying too hard."

"Pyrrha! You're missing the point," Jaune said. "You said it yourself, this is overwhelming. Well, I feel the same way. And that's okay. But how am I supposed to have fun stuffing my mouth with pie when you're busy worrying yourself sick in front of me?"

"Right… I was focusing so much on you, I forgot that this was supposed to be about us both," Pyrrha said. "I'm sorry."

"Eh." Jaune waved her off, leaning back a little. "The pies were great."

Pyrrha smiled nervously at him. "I should tell you… There is a good reason I'm worried. It's not just my inexperience," she said slowly. "You say you have low standards, and I won't argue with you on that-"

Jaune nodded.

"-but that's exactly why I put so much effort into this. I had to show you what I feel is real." Pyrrha gestured at him, then at herself. "I mean, I know how strange this must seem to you. After all this time looking for someone, the one girl who likes you back is me. You can't me that isn't a little surreal to you."  
"I mean…" Jaune sucked on his teeth. "Yep. You pretty much nailed it."

"Yes. I'm sure I was the last person you expected to take a shining to you, which I assume is why you didn't try anything with me."

"Jeez, Pyrrha, I'm not that desperate. What is it with everyone thinking I'm some kinda-"

"And I don't blame you." Pyrrha raised her hands showily. "I _am_ pretty amazing, after all. Some might say I'm out of your league!" She shook her head. "Which _is_ complete nonsense. I like you and that's all that matters… except if you didn't like me back, of course."

She looked at him expectantly. Jaune gulped audibly, a drop of sweat slipping down his forehead.

"The things is, you're right. Very scarily right. I never once considered you might like me, Pyrrha," he said.

"Oh, I know."

"But it's not like… bad news or anything. It's… nice. Because I do like you. I just don't know how much yet?" Jaune paused to think. "You are a fantastic person, and an even better friend. Thinking about it now, being with someone like that would be great."

"Who would have guessed building on an already mutually satisfying relationship instead of searching for an instant connection with every stranger with a cute face would produce more meaningful and long-lasting results," Pyrrha said. "Just a thought. A suggestion. I'm not bitter."

"Well, when you put it that way, how can I say no?" Jaune said. "But… I still need time to think."

"…Okay!" Pyrrha smiled. "I can wait. And if when you're done thinking, you find you don't like me that way… We'll be fine!"

She got up and offered him a hand to help him stand. Jaune wiped his hand a little more before taking hers.

"I almost forgot." Pyrrha took a napkin and rubbed his forehead furiously with it. "Sorry, that was driving me nuts."

"Ouch! Can you be gentler?" he yelped. "You keep that up and I'll turn purple a whole different way."

"Sorry." She eased up a little. "Jaune, can you make me a promise?"

"As long as it's not emotionally binding, sure."

"Please don't think too badly of me for being so full of myself just now. Calling myself amazing?" Pyrrha pursed her lips. "Terrible. And don't tell Ruby. That is no way for a teacher to behave."

Jaune grinned. He had a pretty good idea what his answer would be already.

* * *

Ruby came out on the porch, holding herself small within her cloak. She wasn't sure about what she was going to do, but it was either that, or nothing, and Ruby was a woman of action – or at least she liked to think herself so. She knew she could be hopelessly indecisive sometimes.

Yang was still there, leaning against the railing with a pained expression on her face. Ruby almost turned around and went back inside, but she managed to stop herself, and moved forward. "Hey."

Yang snapped to attention, looking panicked for a second before assuming a more neutral expression. "Hi!" She looked at Ruby blankly for a moment. "…What's up?"

"I don't know. I was hoping you were going to tell me, actually," Ruby said. " _If_ you're comfortable."

It was hard to miss the anger in Yang's face, though Ruby had a feeling it wasn't aimed at her in specific. Not that it was much comfort.

"Sorry. I just thought… Well, obviously something happened with you and Blake. I was curious…" Ruby bit her lip. "Not curious, just… I was worried, I guess. But if you don't wanna talk-"

"It's not that complicated," Yang said. "Some stuff happened, I put my trust in her, and she left. She didn't really explain why. And yeah, I can maybe think of a few reasons, but that's not really any helpful. Just a way to torture myself a little."

"Oh. Okay, uh… there's a lot to unpack there," Ruby said awkwardly. "Bear with me here. It might take a while for me to process."

"Don't worry about it, it's in the past. I'm moving on!" Yang pointed at her mouth and smiled widely. " _See_? This is the textbook face of acceptance!"

Ruby wasn't convinced, not in the slightest, and Yang knew it too. They stared at each other for a moment before Yang finally broke eye contact and returned to looking away from the house.

"Look, Yang, I don't know how to say this, but…" Ruby said. "We're sisters now, and I think that means we can lean on each other, no matter what. If you're feeling bad, I'll be there to listen, even if you think it's something stupid." She grinned. "I mean, I already do that on the regular with all my friends, but you… You get the Ruby Special! I'll give you all my undivided attention, and more! Hugs included."

"That's… that's great, Ruby." Yang paused. "You want me to be completely honest with you, then?"

"Yep. I want you to feel better!" Ruby replied cheerfully.

"Well then. I've known you were here in Vale for a long time, even before Blake left," Yang said. "I could have shown up with Dad at your door months ago. I just… didn't."

Ruby's mouth formed a little circle as she tried to make sense of the information. There was an implication there – but Yang surely didn't mean to say – but she had been so silent ever since Ruby had shown up, almost ignoring her, every sign pointed to it-

"That's not to say I didn't want to, because I wanted to, _so much_. Dad too, even Blake. They both said we should go see you," Yang said. "But I was scared. That, and a million other things. So I made excuses, pretended you weren't here… anything to delay the inevitable."

"I… I don't get it," Ruby said. "You were scared of me?"

"No! I was scared of…" Yang trailed off into silence. She rubbed her forehead a bit, gathering her thoughts, and sighed. "I confronted my mother during the battle at the Rift. I was trying to get answers – hoping for a miracle, really. But I just got what I already knew. She's an evil woman who causes nothing but pain to everyone around her. She's petty and selfish and- you get the point."

"Yeah. Not a big fan of her either," Ruby muttered. "What's she got to do with anything?"

"I am… _ashamed_ … of her. Of being her daughter," Yang said, struggling with every word that left her mouth. "And… in extension… I'm ashamed of myself. Because, whether I like it or not, there's a lot of her in me."

Ruby opened her mouth to protest, but Yang raised a hand to stop her.

"I haven't been able to firebend since then. _That_ is how ashamed I am." Yang turned to face her. "So of course I didn't come to you. I mean, look at you! You're the Avatar! You're everything that's good in the world! And I'm just… the Fire Lord's daughter."

"My mother hates me. Blake left me. I couldn't take another chance with you. If I hurt you too, I would- _Ouch_! What the hell!"

Yang grasped at her shoulder and stared bewildered at Ruby as she lowered her fist.

"You know what, you _are_ selfish! You're a selfish jerk!" Ruby exclaimed, eyes brimming with tears. "Everything's about you, isn't it?!"

"That- Isn't that the point of this conversation?" Yang stuttered. "You told me you were going to listen!"

"Yeah, well, I didn't say I was going to be super supportive!"

"Then what was that about hugs?!"

"Whatever!" Ruby shook her hands in Yang's face. "I'm not perfect, you know? I have my own problems too. Did you ever stop to consider that?"

"I… I guess not?" Yang replied, still utterly puzzled by Ruby's sudden change of attitude. "How was I supposed to know?"

"Hmm, let me think for a second… Maybe by not being a complete stranger and coming to talk to me!" Ruby huffed in frustration. " _Whatever_."

Ruby turned away and started to draw her cloak close to her, but Yang pulled her back by the shoulder, forcing them face-to-face again.

"Ruby… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you," Yang said. "What did I do wrong?"

"It's just… Everyone expects so much out of me," Ruby said, her voice barely a whisper. "Sometimes it's not even because I'm the Avatar. I'm either that, or the girl who lost everything. It's like I'm always walking a tightrope these days. Can't be too weak, can't be too strong. I was hoping it would be different with you."

Yang was stunned to respond.

"I didn't mean what I said before. You're not selfish," Ruby said. "It's okay that you were scared. I guess I would be too, if I were in your place. Even if it kinda hurts that you thought I would judge you or something." She looked up at Yang for a split second and shrank a little. "I wouldn't, you know? And not because I'm the Avatar, but because I'm… me."

She breathed out, and an unseen tension seemed to discharge in the air around them.

"Oof. I guess we both have a lot to work through," Yang said. "For the record, I don't think you're awesome just because you're the Avatar."

"Mhmm. That's what all my friends say."

"That's because _your friends_ aren't blind."

Ruby rolled her eyes at Yang, trying to appear indifferent. Yang just chuckled and pulled her into a hug.

"How about we go back inside and pretend Dad wasn't snooping on us all this time?" Yang suggested.

"Okay," Ruby said. "Thanks for the talk, Yang."

"Hey, I should be the one thanking you," Yang said. "Besides… That's what sisters are for, anyway."

* * *

"You're going to have to say something eventually," Adam said. "I'm perfectly fine sitting here. Don't have anywhere else to go."

Blake clenched her fists. Oh, there was a _lot_ she had to say to him. The tricky part was getting the words out. Being furious with someone who hurt you is easy, until the moment you're face to face with them. Doubly so if you had hurt them in return. Despite her best interests, Blake was beginning to wonder whether she was right to be so angry at Adam.

"You're not gonna tell me about the tunnels, are you?" she asked finally.

"What is there to tell that you don't already know?" Adam rolled his eyes. "No one cares about the tunnels, Blake. That's not what the General wants to know about."

"Then tell me what it is he wants," Blake demanded.

"Can't you figure it out yourself, Blake?" Adam almost looked disappointed. "Why would he bring _you_ to question me?"

Blake pursed her lips. There was a myriad of possible answers to that questions, most of them related to her being a faunus, or having been involved with the White Fang. But she doubted a man of Hazel's position would think so simply.

"I don't know what he thinks _we_ are," Blake said. "And whatever you believed before, you can be sure now that you were wrong."

"Blake, you have a real gift of inventing things out of nothing." Adam chuckled. "If you care so little about me, why are you still here? You can just walk away, you know. It's not like you ever had trouble doing that before."

"That was entirely on you, Adam. I saw what you were becoming then, and I got out," Blake said, struggling to keep her composure. "My only mistake was thinking you had changed. I guess I am a fool, after all."

Adam's expression turned grave, as if for the first time she'd said something he truly didn't like. Good. She was telling the truth.

"You really think I'm wrong, then," Adam said. "That's a shame. I was hoping you had grown up a little."

"What world do you live in, Adam, where threatening to behead people is the right thing to do?" Blake asked, aghast.

Adam shrugged. "Means to an end, darling."

Blake was too shocked to respond to that. Without even thinking about it, she turned around and walked away, barely keeping herself from a sprint.

"And there she goes!" Adam shouted behind her. "I think our one hour's ended early, gentlemen!"

Blake spun around – and everything went black as something heavy slammed against her forehead.

* * *

Weiss left all subtlety behind as she walked through the palace, one open palm held taut before her, the other staying near her waterskin. Whoever first appeared before her, be them ally or foe, had better be prepared for the wrath of a master waterbender.

What had started as a slight suspicion had quickly escalated into a very real worry. There wasn't a soul to be seen or heard in the palace, and the earth was unnaturally still for a place so many earthbenders frequented. _Something_ was definitely off.

The first order of business was clear: get out as quick as possible. Then she had to find Ruby and the others, and together they would investigate what was happening. Weiss was proud of her capabilities, but even she had to admit that she probably couldn't measure up to whatever – or whoever - was causing this oddity in the palace.

She arrived at the entrance hall and came to a halt, a slight chill running down her spine as she looked around. The stone floor was cracked all throughout the hall, with trails of destruction revealing the dirt beneath, like something had been dragged, or launched, across it. Scorch marks streaked the once flawlessly-decorated walls. And most hauntingly, a splat of red marked a spot on the floor, and smaller drops made a trail to the exit.

Weiss shook her head. There would be time to investigate later.

Or not. As she walked towards the exit, soldiers started to appear from a hallway across from her. Weiss sped up her steps, but that wasn't enough. The soldiers formed a line that, intentionally or not, blocked her from the exit.

Weiss was leaning towards the latter.

"Excuse me," she said icily, summoning a string of water and wrapping it around her hand and forearm. "I'm royalty. You wouldn't like to keep me waiting."

The soldiers didn't move except to take position around her. Observing carefully, Weiss realized that under their helmets, most of them were faunus. She was willing to bet the others were too, and she simply couldn't tell with one brief look.

"Alright. I see what's going on," she said. "White Fang, I'm assuming. You're not losing your heads over my bloodline." She took her free hand and brought it under the other to steady it. "Regardless, I should warn you that I'm more than a spoiled princess. I'm a Grandmaster of the Waterbending Academy."

She waited a moment, hoping for another way out of the situation, but the faunus didn't move.

Too bad.

Weiss brought the water forward, gathering it into a thick orb floating before her palm, and aimed it at the nearest enemy. She thrust her palm, willing tens of little particles of water to shoot out of the orb, each as dense as a pebble from the earth. The first faunus went down, and she changed her aim to the next. A spire rose from the ground to block her barrage, but it was quickly broken into pieces, and she took down a half-dozen faunus before running out of water.

Weiss slid backwards, avoiding a thrown spear at the same time that she brought more ammo out of her waterskin. Soon she had a liquid tendril held in each hand, and she quickly took them to work, yanking her assailants off their feet and tossing them in random directions, one by one. All the while, she kept up an agile dance to avoid the projectiles that targeted her, be them weapon or rock.

She would have made Winter proud. But as formidable as she was, she was vastly outnumbered, and taking down one enemy only meant she had two more to contend with. And eventually, Weiss swiped with her hand and nothing came from her waterskin.

For a moment, she looked down at her hands, as if she couldn't reconcile what was happening. Then she brought them up again, closing them into fists in front of her. Weiss knew there was no chance left for her, but she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Amongst the faunus, someone started clapping. "Congratulations! That was quite the show, princess." Adam Taurus appeared, walking towards her with a derisive smile on his lips.

"Of course, it's you," Weiss said. "How did you get out? And what did you do to the Queen?"

" _I_ didn't do anything," Adam said. "That's a problem with you humans. You assume too much. Though I am flattered."

He stopped before her, and Weiss swung a punch at his face, but he simply caught her hand and twisted her arm around. Weiss grit her teeth as her vision blurred with tears.

"They didn't teach you this at the Academy, did they?" Adam tossed her away, and Weiss fell clumsily on her knees. "Take her underground. Make sure there's no water for her to use."

Two hands grabbed her arms and started dragging her away. Panic bubbled from within her, but Weiss kept a fierce glare on Adam. He only smiled in return.

* * *

"So I told them that maybe we should tie ourselves together with rope or something, in case we got lost in the dark," Ruby said. "But Weiss said that was silly, so we didn't. Well guess who was feeling silly five minutes later!" She paused. "Definitely not me."

"Wow, Ruby. How thoughtful of you," Yang said, humoring her.

"You really are a genius," their father chimed in.

"Right? I've been trying to get people to notice that!" Ruby grinned. "Anyway, back to the story. We went in the cave, and like I'd thought, everything was pitch black. Next thing I knew, Weiss and Jaune were gone. That's when the visions started…"

Yang raised an eyebrow at that. She was beginning to think Ruby had breathed in some weird cave dust then and still couldn't tell the real memories from the fake. But she did sound very earnest, and if her friends had had similar experiences…

"So Jaune saw his worst fears – the Mind, I guess – and Weiss saw her greatest desires – which, fun fact, she still hasn't told anyone about and I am _dying_ to know," Ruby said. "She was the Heart. Which left me as the Mind." She shrugged. "I saw the future."

"Sounds like a mixed experience." Taiyang pointed at his belly. "If I'd learned that this round thing was my fate when I was a kid…"

Yang snorted. "You still wouldn't have gone on a diet."

"Well now!" he protested. "…Yeah I have no follow-up to that."

"The future I saw really wasn't that far off, though. At least that's what I think. Some stuff happened just a week after," Ruby said. "Like, that was the first time I got an idea that we're related. I also saw Pyrrha, and I knew she was important right away. Cinder too - she helped me in the cave, which I guess is why I trusted her when we met for real."

Ruby jumped a little at the faces they made. They looked so startled, she might as well have said she had jumped from a rooftop.

"Ruby, did you say _Cinder_?" Taiyang asked carefully.

"Yes. Cinder Fall." Realization dawned on Ruby's face. "Ah, I guess you guys know her. She's Fire Nation."

"She's an _assassin_ , Ruby. She works for my mother!" Yang exclaimed, standing up frantically. "Did she attack you? Is she hunting you?"

"What? No! I mean, yes, kinda – she attacked me but not that way – and she's not hunting me," Ruby said. "We were friends for a while. Not anymore, though."

Yang looked at her like she was mad, and Ruby realized too late that she had sounded upset for all the wrong reasons.

"I mean… Cinder's not all that bad," she muttered. "I think she's just hurt and confused, and she's got no one to help her."

"Ruby, she tried to capture me," Yang said firmly.

"She's not with the Fire Lord anymore," Ruby insisted meekly. "She's been helping plan the counter-attack, and everyone says we wouldn't have gotten anywhere this fast without-"

"She almost killed Dad."

Ruby opened and closed her mouth. Yang fell back on the couch, shaking her head in dismay.

The front door slammed open, and before any of them could stand, Sun came sliding into the living room, barely coming to a halt before he hit a wall. Rebalancing himself with his tail, he looked at each of them in turn, his eyes barely registering Ruby.

"Sun!" Yang shouted. "What the heck, you can't just barge into people's homes like this!"

"This is my house technically," he said quickly. "Also this is an emergency. Have you guys looked outside?"

Taiyang got up and moved over to a window. He observed for a moment, his eyes narrowing with confusion and worry.

"Something big is happening. Like, scary big – not the good kind," Sun said. "People are taking to the streets everywhere, smashing stuff, fighting the authorities. It's madness!"

"Sun, I don't want to assume, but…" Taiyang looked at him severely. "Are all of them…?"

Sun nodded. "They're shouting stuff about a White Fang, or something like that. I've heard things about the palace, but I'm not sure what's true."

Ruby cursed unintelligibly, shaking her fists a bit, and Sun seemed to notice her for the first time.

"Who's she?"

"She's my sister, Ruby," Yang said absentmindedly, joining her father.

"Oh cool. Didn't know you had a sister," Sun said. "What are you doing here in Vale, Ruby?"

"I'm the Avatar." Ruby walked past him to exit the house.

Sun looked blankly ahead for a few seconds, then shrugged and followed everyone outside.

It really was chaos. From their elevated point of view, they could see the narrows streets of the Lower Ring were packed with people. Fire were being started, and there were flashes of metal among the mass. The wind carried shouts of all kinds.

"We need to do something about this," Ruby said. "If things have just started and it's already this bad, imagine later. But there are so many people – and how can we tell who's bad and who's just caught up in the chaos…?"

Taiyang laid a hand on her shoulder. "This is beyond our control."

"We can't just watch!" Yang exclaimed.

"I never said that. But trying to interfere here is likely to do more harm than good," he said. "Ruby, you said the White Fang was apprehended yesterday. And Sun, you said something happened in the palace. Chances are, that's where this whole thing originated from."

Ruby snapped to attention. "Weiss is there. And Blake."

"So we go to the palace," Yang decided. "Except there's no way we can get through to there. Just look at that, we'll be trampled."

Ruby took out her staff and stepped ahead. "We fly there," she said. "I can't take three with me, though."

"Take Yang," Taiyang said. "She's only slightly heavy for her size-"

" _What?_ "

"-and I don't like the thought of her fighting through the crowd without her bending," he finished. "I probably should have lead with that one."

"I'll help you get through, Fire Dad," Sun said. "You're gonna learn some rad moves today. Hope you can handle it."

" _Please_. I was born rad!"

Ruby shot Yang a dubious look. The blonde just shrugged and moved over to her.

"So how do we do this?" Yang asked, looking at Ruby's staff.

"You hold on tight to me, I airbend like our lives depend on it. It'll be easy because it's the truth," Ruby said.

Yang hesitated for a moment before wrapping her arms around Ruby from behind. "Like this?"

Ruby winced. "Oof. You _are_ heavy!"

"You're just jealous."

Ruby looked back at her, confused. Yang spared them both the explanation.

"Dad, be careful," Yang said. "I know you think you're such a badass, but these streets are crazy! Don't go trying to be a hero."

"You're saying that to me? That's precious." Taiyang's face grew serious. "Don't worry about me, dragonling. Focus on protecting your sister." He looked at Ruby. "The same goes to you, rose petal."

Ruby gaped at him for a moment, then nodded and kicked off the ground. Yang yelped as they went soaring skyward in high speed before a strong gust took them in a different trajectory towards the palace.

* * *

Weiss scrapped her knees as she was shoved down onto an uneven, rocky soil. The bag was lifted from her head, allowing her to breathe, see and hear regularly again. It was just in time so she could turn and see a metal door close and be locked.

Breathing shakily, Weiss got back on her feet and looked around. She was surrounded by four walls and a ceiling, all made of multi-layered plates of metals. The space between the walls was so narrow, she could barely take five steps from one end to the other. The ceiling, too, was nauseatingly low. For once, Weiss was grateful she wasn't as tall as her sister.

"Weiss?"

Startled, Weiss spun around and reflexively reached for her waterskin, only to remember it was empty. That was likely why it hadn't been taken away from her.

She eased up a bit when she identified the source of the voice. Sat against a corner of the cage was Blake, one arm wrapped around her knees, the other resting on her forehead. Weiss saw a hint of purple behind her fingers before Blake shifted her weight, allowing her hair to fall and cover it completely.

"They got you too," Blake said. "You think they invited us to the palace just for this?"

"I don't know. Depends who's _they_ ," Weiss said. "The Queen and the Council were a no-show today, so I got suspicious and tried to leave. That's when your – that's when Adam showed up with the White Fang and stopped me." She paused. "What happened to you?"

"Went to talk to Adam in the dungeons. Hazel left. And when I tried to leave…"

Blake tapped her forehead lightly. Weiss crouched beside her, nodding to herself.

"You think General Hazel is behind this?"

"Maybe," Blake said. "Cinder Fall was in the dungeons before me. She left, said she had an _appointment_ with the Queen. Hazel went after her. I think they might be in this together – the two of them, and Adam."

"…No. He's loyal to the Queen. Why would he stage a coup now?" Weiss shook her head. "There was a fight in the palace. Fire and stone. I think Hazel was onto Cinder and Adam, and when he tried to stop her…"

Weiss frowned. She assumed Hazel was a powerful bender, but appearances can be deceiving. As for Cinder, Weiss had plenty of evidence of her strength, not to mention her cunning and viciousness. She was hard pressed to think of someone who could match any of those alone.

"We need to find a way out, and fast," Weiss said. "Who knows what damage that fire-breathing snake is doing right now."

"There's no point, unless you can turn metal into water," Blake said. "We need to save our energy for when rescue arrives."

"And what makes you so sure we'll be rescued?" Weiss asked scathingly.

"Now that you're here, I'm sure help will come." Blake rubbed her forehead distractedly. "Ruby will move heaven and earth to find you."

Weiss grinned, but that small sliver of hope and joy quickly turned sour.

Blake stared at her questioningly for a moment before coming to the same realization as her.

* * *

Ruby landed before the palace and lowered her staff with a twirl. Yang stumbled on ahead, trying to play it cool while regaining her balance.

"You okay?" Ruby asked. Everything about her was dead serious, from her voice to the way she held herself. She was like the ocean ready to strike out, the only evidence of her nerves being the white knuckles wrapped around her staff.

"I'm good," Yang said. "What's the plan? Do we wait for Dad, or-"

"We go inside. Throne room first," Ruby stated. "Then we find Weiss and Blake."

Yang nodded. Together, they stepped inside the palace.

Not ten seconds later, they were surrounded by a hundred masked faunus, sword and spears and stones pointed their way. Yang grabbed Ruby by the wrist and pulled her close, while Ruby raised her staff again, silver eyes narrowing.

General Hazel stepped forward.

* * *

Their date over, Jaune and Pyrrha walked home, taking their sweet time on the way back, partly to enjoy each other's company, and partly because Jaune was eating the remaining pieces of pies with gusto.

They were so content, they almost didn't notice the altered state of the Middle Ring. It wasn't obvious at first, but the lack of people on the streets and the closed doors and windows everywhere was a disquieting sight, especially as it was still daylight out.

And when they got home, Pyrrha nearly missed the vibrations coming from inside. They were quiet and sporadic, like someone sleeping, but there was something about them that unnerved Pyrrha to the core.

She raised a hand to stop Jaune, then counted down from five and opened the door with a kick. Pyrrha dashed inside, holding up her shield to protect herself from fire or stone or anything that came her way.

Nothing did. Slowly, Pyrrha lowered her shield.

Battered and bleeding, Cinder lowered her bow.

For a moment, they stared at each other. Then, Cinder faltered and dropped to the floor.


	40. The Shattering

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Two: Earth**

**Chapter Twenty: The Shattering**

* * *

Jaune caught Cinder before she hit the floor and brought her back to her feet. Her bow slipped from her grasped as she flailed, until her hands found purchase on his shoulders. A moment of tense silence passed, Cinder staring at the floor with glazed eyes, while Jaune held her and Pyrrha watched, her shield raised.

Then, Cinder seemed to realize the position she was in and pushed herself away from Jaune – if it weren't for her apparent weakness, he would have been knocked to the floor. Her eyes flew to Pyrrha, narrowing dangerously, and she held one hand taut at her side, as if prepared to recover her bow at the slightest sign of aggression.

Pyrrha tried to maintain her calm, though every good instinct in her was telling her to shout and demand an explanation as to why Cinder was in bleeding on the floor of their home. She knew it would be extremely unwise to push the firebender right now. Injured as she appeared to be, Cinder was a still terrifying force to contend with – perhaps even more so because of it.

"Okay. So," Jaune said, raising his empty hands and showing them to Cinder. "Pyrrha, I don't think you're gonna be needing your shield, yeah?"

Pyrrha looked at him in shock, but soon realized what he was trying to tell her. They were on the same wavelength – the best thing to do was to get Cinder to feel safe, and from there… From there, they could figure out the rest.

Pyrrha loosened her hold on her shield, then made to lay it on the floor. Midway through the motion, she saw Cinder recoil and curl her left fist, leaving only her index and middle fingers out and joined. Pyrrha's heart skipped a beat, but somehow she kept her calm, and slowly held out her shield to Cinder.

Cinder looked down at the shield, then back at her. Finally, she uncurled her hand and took a step back. Her eyes, which before seemed to be almost incandescent, cooled off somewhat. "Keep it."

Pyrrha's shoulders dropped fast, but she otherwise kept her reaction to a minimum. Jaune wasn't so subtle, releasing his pent-up breath and wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

"I'm terribly sorry for the surprise. Greeting you with an arrow was especially rude," Cinder said, appearing to ease up, though her chest was still heaving laboriously. "I was expecting… someone else."

"Not Ruby, I hope," Pyrrha said, glad Cinder hadn't taken her shield.

Cinder shook her head. "Hazel."

She stepped back and sat down on the living room couch, slouching slightly as she looked down at her arms, and Pyrrha realized she wasn't as injured as she had first thought. Cinder wasn't actually bleeding, not anymore at least, but the exposed skin of her arms and her torso showed some nasty bruises which would only get uglier with time. All in all, she seemed to be holding up well – disregarding that earlier fall.

"Did you say Hazel? As in, _the_ General Hazel?" Jaune asked, brow furrowed.

Cinder looked up at him derisively. "Do you know any other?"

Jaune winced and looked at Pyrrha for help. "Hazel," she said, looking back at the front door. "Why were you expecting him?"

" _Because_ …" Cinder gestured at herself. "…he's the one responsible for _this_."

Jaune's eyes widened. "You mean General Hazel beat you up?"

He immediately regretted his choice of words as Cinder rose slightly, hands clenching into fists. Instinctively, Pyrrha stepped closer to Jaune and put her shield between him and Cinder.

"Since you're so slow on the uptake, I'll make this simple for you," Cinder said bitingly. "Hazel has allied with Adam Taurus and his White Fang and mounted a coup on the throne. I caught wind of it before it happened, but he intercepted me as I went to warn the Queen." She paused, her eyes glowing with an unquenchable fury. "He got the better of me, but I managed to escape the palace. The arrogant bastard must have thought I would collapse from my injuries, or else he'd have chased me."

"Or maybe he just didn't care if you escaped," Pyrrha said.

This time, Cinder looked not simply annoyed, but outright offended. "Either way, that mistake will be his downfall. I'll see to that myself."

Jaune walked away to look through a window, then left the room entirely, leaving Pyrrha alone with Cinder.

If their last meeting wasn't enough to make things tense between the two of them, the way Cinder was seething in silence certainly was. Pyrrha didn't let her guard down for a second – she wasn't sure she could at this point, even if she wanted to.

"Why did you come here?" Pyrrha asked. "If Hazel had chased you, you would have brought him directly to us."

"Yes, that was rather the point," Cinder said. "Where's Ruby?"

Pyrrha scowled. "Why do you care where she is?"

"Because she is the only person in this accursed city who would care to help me, you blithering idiot!" Cinder shouted. "Now can you tell me where the Avatar is so we can go stop those bastards from cutting off your Queen's head?!"

Pyrrha gaped at her. Cinder took a deep breath, looking away sharply, as if that was all she could to keep herself from turning her anger into something physical. Taking a small step back, Pyrrha subtly slid her shield down her arm until she had a firm grip on it.

The tension dropped significantly when Jaune returned, sword at his hip. He looked at Pyrrha and Cinder concernedly for a moment, then nodded to himself.

"Well, Ruby's clearly not here," Jaune said. "Neither is Weiss. Lucky you, I guess." He gestured at Cinder. "Blake's also not here."

"Blake. The faunus, you mean?" Cinder's face shone with realization. "She came to the dungeons just as I left, with Hazel in tow. Could it be that she was accompanied by Ruby?"

Pyrrha snapped her fingers and ran over to the dining table to grab a scroll. "Weiss came in with these this morning." She opened the scroll and quickly read its contents. "An official summon from the Queen's council, for her and Blake! Yes, they must have gone there, and Ruby went with them!"

"Well, I don't have any other guess," Jaune said. "Let's go right now, Pyrrha – they could be in trouble!" He looked at Cinder. "There's absolutely no chance you'd just sit quiet here and let us deal with the situation, right?"

Cinder stood up and grabbed her bow. "Clever boy." She cracked her neck and stretched her arms above her head, a fiery look in her eyes. "I will make Hazel scream for mercy. He will know _hell_."

"Okay. A little extreme, maybe, but good initiative," Jaune said. "Let's go, then?"

Cinder marched out of the house without another word. Before he could go after her, Pyrrha grabbed Jaune by the wrist and pulled him close.

"Are you sure about this?" she whispered. "What if all of this is a trap and we're walking straight into it?"

"I don't think Cinder's lying. I mean, if she is, she really went above and beyond to trick us," Jaune said. "I think we should give her a prize or something if that's case."

"Okay, say she's _not_ lying – should we be working with her? We know what she's capable of. And the state she's in right now…" Pyrrha pursed her lips. "I think I can take her down now without a huge fight."

"No, it's okay. We'll both be watching her, so if she tries anything…" Jaune said. "Just trust me on this, Pyrrha. The most important thing is for us to find the others. We might need Cinder."

"…Alright. I trust you," Pyrrha said. "But if she so much as looks at you wrong again, I'll break her legs."

Jaune's eyebrows shot up. "Well, then. If anything, this has been a unique second date so far." He grinned. "I approve!"

Pyrrha rolled her eyes. "Come on. Let's not keep the psychopath waiting."

* * *

"…General?"

Ruby lowered her staff slowly, confusion written all over her face. She looked at Hazel, then at the surrounding faunus, then back at him. Yang's hold on her wrist tightened, and Ruby could feel the heat of her breath on her ear.

"Avatar," Hazel said. "I was expecting you." He held up a fist, and the faunus lowered their weapons, though that did little to quell Ruby's fear.

"What's going on here? How did the White Fang get out?" she asked, barely hearing the sound of her own voice over her thundering heart. "And why are you with them?"

"I released the White Fang," Hazel said. "Worry not, Avatar. They have no intention to harm you… unless you give them a reason to."

Ruby hardly thought he had any insight as to what the White Fang's intentions were, but she was in no position to argue. She elbowed Yang lightly to get her to release her arm, and though Yang complied, she looked more on edge than Ruby herself.

"Where's Glynda?" Ruby asked.

"When the reality of her predicament became clear to her, the Queen made a wide decision and retreated peacefully. I suspect she might have left the limits of the city already," Hazel said. "I hope you will follow in her example."

Ruby frowned. "Glynda's not the kind to just run away like that," she said. "You've got a bunch of bad guys with you. Why should I believe anything you say?"

"We've avoided any major bloodshed so far," Hazel said. "Why would I compromise now that by lying to you, Avatar?"

Ruby grit her teeth, her disbelief morphing into a simmering rage. "She trusted you," she said, taking a step forward and pointing her staff at Hazel. The room was once again filled with the sound of unsheathing steel, but that didn't stop her from speaking. "She trusted you - you were loyal to her for years, and you turned on her, just like that! No reason, no warning, you just… What kind of person does something like that?!"

Hazel looked away for a moment, his impassive expression breaking with the slightest sorrow before it returned to normal.

"I see it'll take more effort to convince you. But this is no place to have a conversation," he said. "Please, if you'll come with me, I will answer any and all questions you may have, Avatar."

Ruby didn't even have time to consider, as Yang suddenly moved in front of her, fists clenched.

"She's not going anywhere with you!" Yang shouted. "You're going to tell your men to stand down, and you'll do it _now_. I won't tell you twice."

Ruby stared at Yang, amazed, and a little afraid. She supposed that was the royal princess inside Yang coming out of hiding – whether that was a natural occurrence, or she was just putting on a show, Ruby couldn't tell.

Yet Hazel didn't seem affected. He scoured Yang up and down with his eyes, then spoke again, stoic as ever. "And on what authority do you base your demands?"

"My fists, and a little fire if you continue to piss me off." Even with a hundred people crowding the entrance hall, Yang's voice bounced off the walls. Silence itself fell under her command, and she filled it with her rage. "You are speaking to the future Lord of the Fire Nation. You'd do well to end this outrage now, lest I remember it once I am sitting on my throne."

She locked eyes with Hazel. The air warped around her, and Ruby backed away instinctively, the sudden heat biting at her skin. Yang didn't seem to notice – everyone could have dropped dead around her and she wouldn't have noticed, so focused she was on the general.

"You certainly know how to mirror your mother's presence," Hazel said. "But you lack the power to make that any more than an act."

He took a single step forward, and the whole room shook. Yang met his stare for a couple seconds more before her eyes wavered and she faltered, bowing her head and falling into silence.

"As I thought." Hazel's gaze returned to Ruby. "I advise you to take my offer, Avatar. In this moment, your authority is as meaningless to me as your sister's."

There was a moment of silence, then the hall exploded with gasps and shouts from the White Fang around them.

Ruby's eyes widened. "How do you know…?"

Hazel raised a hand to silence the White Fang again. "That's unimportant," he said. "Come with me. Your sister may accompany you." He paused. "Make this easy, and you'll reunite with your friends sooner."

A cold sting pierced Ruby's heart. "You… you have Weiss?"

Hazel tilted his head significantly, then turned and walked away, the White Fang parting around him without as much as peep. Ruby and Yang looked at each other, searching for an answer in each other's eyes.

They didn't have that many options.

* * *

"Weiss, stop. We're not breaking out."

Weiss ignored Blake and kept pushing against the wall, pressing her fingers as hard as she could against the metal. She was trembling already, exhausted not only physically, but mentally too. She was exerting every sense she had to the maximum in an attempt of finding any trace of water in their cell – humid walls; deposits of water deep underground which she could pull to the surface – but it was useless.

" _Weiss_."

She pushed herself away from the wall and faced it for a moment, as if her very anger could pierce a hole through it. Her shoulders slumped ever so slightly. Then, as if possessed by a sudden surge of energy, she took a sharp breath and started running in place.

Sat in her corner, Blake could only stare at Weiss, completely thrown by her behavior. Hesitantly, Blake got up and went to stand beside the princess, raising a hand to touch her before swiftly lowering it.

"Weiss, have you gone mad?" Blake asked. "Just what are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm exerting myself-" Weiss stopped momentarily to take a breath, then redoubled her effort. "-exerting myself physically. Building up a s-sweat. It's our only way out, so I'd appreciate it if you contributed to the- the cause!"

"Why would I ever-" Blake stopped herself, the full extent of Weiss' plan dawning on her. "Weiss, that's never going to work! These walls are made of metal. They're solid all the way through, you can't cut through that!"

"And you would know that how? The last time I checked, _you_ weren't a Grandmaster of the Waterbending Aca-" Weiss stumbled, caught herself on a wall, and started running again. "Help, or sit quiet."

"Even if we produced enough sweat for you to bend us a way out, we'd be reduced to withering husks. What would we do then? Play dead and hope for the best?" Blake said. "You're being obtuse."

Weiss didn't acknowledge her in the slightest. Her face had turned a vivid red from all the running, her chest rising and falling with shallow breaths, but she remained resolute in her silence.

"Ash and Grimm," Blake swore, rubbing her forehead in frustration. "Alright. I tried being gentle."  
Giving no warning, Blake grabbed Weiss by the arm and shoved her against a wall. Weiss collapsed in a most spectacularly messy manner, and for a while she stayed on the floor, breathing hard and loud. When a fraction of her strength returned, she pushed herself up just enough to put her back against the wall and glared up at Blake.

"How dare you!" she exclaimed. "I could have been seriously hurt!"

"You didn't, but if you try to get back up, we'll have to try your luck again," Blake said. "Listen to me. We are going to conserve our energy until we get a _real_ opportunity to break out – or Ruby shows up to rescue us." She stared severely at Weiss. "You know better than me that she's coming. Unless you don't believe in her anymore?"

"That's just the issue, you moron!" Weiss yelled. "Of course she's coming to rescue us! That's the whole reason they captured us – to bait her in! That _idiot_ is gonna get herself killed!"

Truly at her patience's end, Blake opened her mouth to shout back at Weiss – only to stop when she saw the glimmering reflection in the princess' eyes. She stood frozen for a moment, then slowly lowered herself in front of Weiss.

"Weiss, it's… it's not your fault… It's Adam and Hazel and Cinder, they're the ones-"

"Don't _console_ me," Weiss hissed. "I'm not a toddler. I don't even like you – we're not _friends_!"

"Regardless… I don't think your _actual_ friends will be angry with you for getting kidnapped. And I get the impression you're all very big on feelings, so they wouldn't think less of you for-"

"S-shut up!"

Blake felt a sharp splash of water on her cheek. She blinked a couple times, then felt the point of impact. "Did you just… _tearbend_ at me?"

Weiss slid a little on the wall, mortified. "…I'm sorry?"

Blake stared at her for a moment, incredulous, before her lips unwittingly parted into a little smile. Weiss covered her mouth with her hands and made a noise which at first sounded like a sob, but Blake quickly realized she was giggling instead.

"I'm warning you now," Blake said. "This is not going to stay between us. Everyone will be hearing about it."

Weiss bit a finger to contain her laughter. She thought she might be going a little delirious, but she would gladly take that over wallowing in fear and self-pity.

"Well, then. You can tell them," she said shakily. "But I have seniority over you. Good luck trying to-"

The door opened and collided against the wall with a bang, suddenly filling the cage with the light of a torch. Weiss rubbed her eyes furiously, desperate to readjust her vision. A startled cry echoed around her.

"Time to go, princess. Boss has something he wants you to see."

Weiss braced herself to fight off whoever the voice belonged to. She opened her eyes halfway and held her hands in front of her like claws – only to receive a kick to the shin which sent her sprawling back, dizzy and with a metallic taste in her mouth.

The door closed. Weiss got on her knees and stared at the darkness.

"…Blake?"

* * *

When Hazel had asked her to come with him, Ruby had expected him to take her somewhere bad – a closed space, maybe the dungeons even – somewhere she couldn't easily escape. She hadn't expected to be shown into an open garden at the heart of the palace, with a ceiling open to the sky. Birds and bugs fluttered about in a field of lush grass, and the breeze carried an earthy scent.

In the center of the garden stood a great tree. It was old, but strong, and quite elegant in its simplicity. Something about it made Ruby pause and stare, forgetting all about the spiraling chaos she encountered herself in. She closed her eyes, her consciousness escaping the confines of her mind like a mist that travelled the globe…

Yang elbowed her in the back, and Ruby snapped to attention, alarmed. She looked back at Yang and nodded lightly, saying she understood her message. _Don't drop your guard._

Hazel stopped in front of the tree, and for a moment, simply gazed at it. Ruby suppressed the need to ask him what this place was exactly, knowing there were more important things at stake – chiefly among them, Weiss and Blake.

"You wonder why I did it," Hazel said gravely, his back still turned to Ruby and Yang. "Why I betrayed the queen to which I swore allegiance. Why I set free those who seek to harm her. Why…"

Ruby didn't know what to say. Luckily, Yang was there to speak for her. "Yeah, dude. That's _exactly_ what we were wondering. _Why_?"  
Hazel turned around, and for a split second, the garden seemed to _stop_ around him. Then everything returned to normal, and Ruby had to wonder if she wasn't seeing things.

"I am… was Glynda's closest advisor. Not always. But we've known each other for a long time," Hazel said. "Familiarity often leads to fondness. Mutual understanding. Respect. And those, in time, create complacency. You start to set aside your personal beliefs, because you trust someone. And before you know it…"

"Sorry, you're being really vague," Yang said. "Can you talk like a normal person, please?"

Hazel set his eyes directly at Yang, and like before, she shrank and looked away. Ruby spun her staff anxiously in her hand.

"It's my belief that the four nations should exist in a state of strict division," Hazel stated. "We each have our place in this world. And yes, we have much to learn from one another. But that's where our relations must end. Anything more can only breed catastrophe."

"That's… that's not right," Ruby said. "Yeah, we can't go fighting each other willy-nilly, but…"

"There is no living together without strife," Hazel interjected. "That is where I stand. And I understand you will probably never come to see things as I do. That is the critical point of our coexistence." He gestured at the world around them. "That is where we would peacefully part ways."

Hazel moved, and Ruby started to bring up her staff, only to realize he was simply lowering himself to touch the ground. Closing his eyes, Hazel ran a hand along the grass and dirt. His fingers rose with the bump of a root distant from its tree.

"This soil is sacred. It's where the families of the Earth Kingdom come to rest for all eternity." He made a displeased noise and got up. "The Fire Nation violated it. Grossly." He looked at Yang. "Our peoples clashed, and we both suffered for it. The Water Tribe suffered for it. And the Air Nomads, most of all."

"So what? I mean, I'll be the first in line to say how stupid and senseless this war is, but…" Ruby frowned. "That's on the Fire Lord. It's _her_ stupid war. How does that justify what you're doing here?"

"You have lived a thousand lifetimes, and in each and every one of them you were just as blind," Hazel said, his voice disturbing the dirt around his feet. "This is but _one_ war, Avatar. End it, and in a hundred years, another will take its place, brought on by another Fire Lord or Earth Queen or Chieftain. That will be the history of Remnant forever - nations fighting, never learning… people dying in soil where they don't belong."

Yang shook her head. "And the White Fang isn't killing-"

"Those faunus were born from the soil of the Earth Kingdom!" Hazel interrupted. "I stood by Glynda Goodwitch for fifteen years and watched her deal the best she could with a war she didn't ask for. I was her strength and voice whenever, wherever and however she needed it. That stopped the moment she lost sight of the bigger picture, mixing in with a Water Tribe who didn't lift a finger to help us when we needed it most! With a murderer from the Fire Nation!" He pointed a finger at Ruby. "With _you_!"

"Her?!" Yang shouted. "She's done nothing wrong, you jerk!"

"She's the symbol of everything wrong with this world," Hazel said. He was nowhere close to Ruby, yet she felt like he could take a single step and stomp her into the ground. Somehow, he was more terrifying than any Grimm. "You belong nowhere and everywhere, and you think that's a strength. You couldn't be more wrong. Your power is nothing but a farce."

"Yeah," Yang said. "Such a farce that you had to take our friends hostage so she wouldn't kick your ass to the ends of Remnant the moment she first saw you."

Hazel bowed his head and grinned, as if Yang's words were nothing more than amusing to him. "You misunderstand me still. No matter. You're not the one I'm interested in."

He looked at Ruby, and she replied with a serious look of her own. She didn't truly understand Hazel, but it was clear to her that he meant every word he said. His belief stood like a monolith, unmovable and ever-lasting. There was no chance of her ever changing his mind.

"Okay. So you hate the four nations coming together," Ruby said. "You're gonna banish everyone that's not Earth Kingdom? You're gonna fight the Fire Nation yourself? Is that why you betrayed the Queen?"

"Yes," Hazel said. "I will see it that the people of the Earth Kingdom reclaim their land with their own hands. That is my only goal."

"Why did you want to talk to me, then?" Ruby asked. "Wouldn't it have been easier to just get rid of me?"

"I don't have no need or want to harm you - as long as you don't oppose my goals. Why shed blood when we can reach an agreement instead?" Hazel said. "My terms are simple. You will leave the limits of this city, and from there you will be escorted to the nearest port in the western coast. A ship will be provided to take you wherever you wish, outside of Earth Kingdom territory."

"What about my friends?"

"They may accompany you." Hazel looked at Yang. "I have no use for a disgraced heiress."

"And Weiss and Blake?"

"Taurus has made a claim for your faunus friend. As for the princess, she will be delivered back to her tribe. You may meet her there if you so wish, but not a moment before." Hazel nodded apologetically. "Think of it as insurance of your cooperation."

Ruby grimaced. She didn't like the thought of Weiss being taken away all on her own, not one bit. But they didn't know where Weiss was, or in how much danger she was in. Hazel had been true to his word so far – Ruby could trust him not to harm Weiss. All she needed to do was comply…

"I'll do what you want," Ruby said grudgingly. " _If_ Blake gets to come with me."

"I'm afraid that's not negotiable. She is in Taurus' hands now," Hazel said. "There's nothing I can do about that."  
"What do you mean there's nothing you can do! You're the guy in charge, just tell him to release her!" Ruby exclaimed. "I thought you cared about your people – or is that only true when it's convenient to you?"

"Sacrifices have to be made for the greater good," Hazel stated gravely. "You are in no position to negotiate, Avatar. My offer is final. I suggest you take it, for your own sake"

"Or what?" Ruby raised her staff. "You're gonna – you're gonna kill all of us, huh? For the greater good?!"

"If you force my hand. There is only one way-"

A blinding light flashed before Ruby's eyes. She stumbled back, swinging her staff blindly in front of her. When her vision returned, she saw Hazel laying on his back at the other end of the garden, a trail of smoke rising from his chest.

Ruby spun around and saw Cinder running into the garden, her bow raised with another sparking arrow nocked and aimed at the fallen general. Behind her came Jaune and Pyrrha, looking like they'd just fought through an entire battalion.

"Ruby!" Cinder shouted. "Get away from-"

She skidded to a halt and lowered her bow, eyes widening. Ruby didn't know what had stopped her, until Yang pushed her back with an arm, coming to stand before her protectively. Ruby flinched, feeling the heat irradiating from Yang, washing over her face almost painfully.

"Lay a finger on my sister, and you're done for!"

"What are you _doing_ here?" Cinder hissed. "How did you-"

"I could ask you the same, you psycho!" Yang yelled. "Get the hell away, now!"

Ruby looked from Yang to Cinder, then pushed her sister's arm away and stood between the two of them, holding her arms out. "Not now! We've got more important things to do than fight!"

Cinder blinked and raised her bow again, releasing her arrow. Ruby flinched, but the projectile arched over her right shoulder in the trail of a lightning bolt and collided against a boulder, tearing it apart before it could hit her.

"Ruby, watch out!" Pyrrha shouted. She ran over to Ruby as fast as she could and held out her shield just in time to block a punch from Hazel.

The impact didn't seem to deter the general in the least, as he quickly recovered and lunged at Ruby and Pyrrha again. Pyrrha strengthened her stance while kicking the ground in front of her, causing the rocks beneath the grass to rise in a wave towards Hazel, but he barreled through the obstacle effortlessly.

His fist met Pyrrha's shield again, but this time he kept pressing down. The sheer pressure he put out was enough to bury Pyrrha's ankles into the ground - and he still had a free hand, which he lifted high in a claw-like shape.

"Pyrrha, hold strong!" Ruby yelled, recovering from the shock of the general's reappearance. She spun her staff fast with both hands for a moment before carrying the momentum into an upward swing and launching a gust as powerful as a hurricane.

Pyrrha wavered in place, while Hazel was sent skidding back, until he burrowed his own feet into the ground and stabilized. Ruby jumped over Pyrrha, landed on her shield, and launched herself towards Hazel with a kick. When her foot connected on his chest, however, she felt a pain unlike any she'd ever felt before spike its way up her leg, and she crashed on the ground with tears in her eyes.

Hazel started reaching down to grab her, and Ruby had a split second to see the hole in his shirt, and his skin – his skin? – before an electric arrow exploded on his forehead and blew him back, followed by a continuous barrage of fire.

Jaune appeared at Ruby's side and brought her to her feet. "Are you hurt?" he asked, then shook his head. "That was a dumb question, don't answer."

"I think something's wrong with my leg," Ruby said.

Jaune passed her arm around his neck and helped her walk back to Pyrrha and Yang, passing Cinder, who had yet to let up her assault on Hazel.

Pyrrha knelt beside Ruby and gently tapped her leg. "Yep. I think your leg's broken."

" _Noooo_ …" Ruby dug her nails into her palms and grit her teeth. She wished Pyrrha hadn't said that – it had made the pain even worse, somehow.

The garden fell silent for a moment as Cinder caught her breath. Hazel's massive form rose and fell laboriously on the other side of the garden as he too recovered.

"Anytime someone wants to pitch in, feel free," Cinder said irritably. She looked over her shoulder at Yang. "How about you, princess?"

"I can't…" Yang blinked. "Is that guy made of stone?"

"No, it's a _skin condition_ ," Cinder spat. "What are your eyes for?"

"Don't sass me! We're fighting a freaking golem!"

" _I_ am fighting a freaking golem!"

Hazel stood up, and the ground shook beneath everyone's feet. Cinder fell to her knees, only to be launched back as a head-sized boulder collided against her chest. She fell and rolled to a halt behind everyone else, and for a second Ruby felt her blood run cold – until Cinder twitched and slowly got back on her feet.

"Alright. So. Here's an idea," Jaune said as Hazel began walking towards them. "I have none."

"I don't think I'm a match for him. Not alone," Pyrrha said. "If I had help, maybe, but Ruby is in no condition."

"I can throw some embers in his general direction if that's any useful," Yang offered. "Also, hi. I'm Yang."

"Pyrrha, nice to meet you. I love your hair!"

"Thanks!"

"Ruby," Cinder said. "I think this calls for the Avatar State."

"Are you crazy?! I can't do that!" Ruby shouted.

The ground shook as Hazel took another step. All warmth seemed to leave Ruby's body as she felt his stare fall on her. The patience he had displayed before was gone entirely, replaced by a quiet, but in no way small, rage.

"You have to do it," Cinder said, limping over to Ruby's side. "It's either that, or we all die."

"If I use the Avatar State here, I could bring the whole palace down. What's the point if everyone gets hurt anyway?" Ruby shook her head. "There has to be another way."

"There isn't," Cinder said. "You are in control of your power, not the other way around. Stop being afraid of it."

The ground shook again. Pyrrha stepped past Ruby and took a stance before her, raising her shield high. Jaune passed Ruby to Cinder and joined Pyrrha, and they stood side by side while Hazel grew inevitably closer.

"Ruby, if you're gonna do something," Yang said, glancing nervously at her and Cinder. "You need to do it now."

Accepting she had no other choice, Ruby pushed Cinder away, wincing as she put her weight back on her injured leg. She grit her teeth and closed her eyes, trying to ignore the pain, but with every quaking of the earth, her body was rocked and a new wave of hurt coursed through it.

A broken whimper escaped her lips as she realized the depths of desperation she had fallen to. She had enough trouble accessing the Avatar State normally, how could she ever hope to do it with a broken leg and an entire city descending into chaos around her? Hazel was an unstoppable force. He would destroy her and all her friends without breaking a sweat.

Unless she did something about it. Unless _Ruby_ found the strength within her… Jaune, Pyrrha, Yang, Cinder – she would lose all of them. And Weiss and Blake, wherever they were - they needed her too.

The power came flooding in unannounced, exploding inside her so fast that it threatened to leave the confines of her body and take everything around her. She knew that, with one casual move of her arms, she could unleash devastation of an intensity no other bender before her had ever achieved.

For a terrifying moment, the power overwhelmed her. But somehow, she reigned it in, and her mind gained an unnatural clarity. Ruby's feet left the ground, held by a gentle wind, and when she was high above, her eyes opened with a silver light shining radiantly from them.

" _General Hazel_ ," she spoke with a thousand voices, pointing down at her enemy. " _Stand down now._ "

Hazel stopped, looking up at her in silence. Then, his face contorted with a manic rage, and he shouted so loud Ruby, even in her Avatar State, was stricken by terror.

" _AVATAR!_ "

He leaped towards her, leaving a miniature crater behind him, and reached out with a hand to grab her. A second before his hand closed around her throat, Ruby swiped with a hand, launching him to the ground with a rush of air.

Within a split second of the impact, a multitude of rocky spires emerged from the earth around him, trapping his legs and arms and torso. The prison didn't hold for long, as Hazel shouted in rage and easily broke through the stone. That was only a distraction, however, and he had no time to react as a mighty wind came crashing down on him, pressing him to the ground.

Ruby hovered above Hazel, both hands held out to maintain her offense. " _Give up. You are clearly outmatched._ "

Though he couldn't lift himself even an inch, Hazel didn't cease his struggling. Unflinching, Ruby put even more power into her airbending, her attack now resembling a concentrated tornado. Still, that seemed to have no effect on Hazel, aside from making him angrier.

"He's not going to cooperate!" Cinder shouted over the wind. "Just finish him!"  
Ruby glanced at Cinder for a split second before returning her attention to Hazel. She drew her hands closer together, and her tornado narrowed on his chest. Within seconds, the general's stone-like skin started to break, and his furious struggle lessened as a hint of fear appeared on his face.

Suddenly, Ruby stopped. She stared at Hazel, a slight frown wrinkling her forehead, before raising a hand and bringing it down powerfully. The ground below Hazel opened and he fell in. The earth trembled as he tried to grab onto anything around him as he fell deeper and deeper into the darkness. Almost a full minute later, Ruby clapped her hands, and the ground closed.

Ruby gently glided to the ground and blinked, her eyes returning to normal. She immediately fell backwards, cringing as she held her leg. Jaune rushed over to her side, but Yang got there first.

"Holy crap! That was freaking intense," Yang said. "It's been so long, I had forgotten how crazy powerful you are."

"T-thanks. I try," Ruby mumbled.

Yang carefully touched her arm. "Ruby, are you going to be okay? Your leg's not…?"

"Yeah, i-it's getting better… I think it was more the shock than anything…"

Cinder walked over to the spot Hazel had fallen through. "That wasn't what I had in mind," she said. "I was thinking of a more _permanent_ solution."

"Y-yeah? How about I open the ground again and you can go try your solution yourself!" Ruby hissed. "S-sorry. That wasn't nice. But I wasn't going to k-kill him like that."

"He _will_ be back," Cinder said. "What are we going to do then?"

" _We_ won't be doing anything," Yang growled.

If looks could kill, Cinder would have murdered Yang right then and there. The two of them opened their mouths to speak, but Ruby shushed them, then pointed at her staff, left lying on the grass nearby. Pyrrha picked it up and tossed it to her, and Ruby used it to get back on her feet.

"Listen, I don't care if you wanna punch each other in the face or make out or _whatever_ ," Ruby said. "All that matters right now is finding Weiss and Blake."

"Wait, you don't know where they are?" Jaune asked, startled.

"Hazel got them. All we know is that Adam wanted Blake for some reason, and Weiss-" Ruby faltered. "We don't have a clue where Weiss is."

"The dungeons?" Yang suggested.

"We took out a bunch of goons on the way in," Pyrrha said. "I don't think there were any guarding the dungeons, so probably not there."

"Somewhere else in the palace?"

"We don't have time to search every room in this-" Cinder cut herself short and took a moment to regain her composure. "If we want to find her, our best shot is to stop Adam first. Then we can force the answer out of him. That also seems like a less _selfish_ course of action."

"We can't do anything until we know Weiss is safe," Jaune said. "She's our friend. I know you have difficulty with the concept, Cinder, but-"

"Your _friend_ , if I recall correctly, is a master waterbender who can very well look after herself," Cinder said. "Besides, _if_ the White Fang intended to harm her, that's already happened. Either way, she's not in desperate need of a rescue party."

"Unlike you, who's in desperate need of a punch in the face," Yang grumbled.

Realizing that the discussion wasn't going anywhere, Ruby limped away a bit, then caught Pyrrha's eye and nodded towards the center of the garden. Understanding immediately, Pyrrha came to her side and helped her get to the tree, then hung back patiently.

Ruby kneeled before the great tree and laid out her staff on the soft soil, willing her body and mind to slow down until the voices of the group became but faint whispers. At once, the garden came to life around her. She felt every blade of grass swaying with the wind; the insects that flapped their minuscules wings or burrowed deep into the earth; the fires from Cinder's rage that had yet to extinguish.

Ruby felt all of that and absorbed it, and with it she took hold of the anxiety within herself and pried it from around her heart. She closed her eyes and touched a hand to the earth…

An eternity later – or a single heartbeat – Ruby opened her eyes again and felt a shiver run up her spine, stealing the air from her lungs. Pyrrha crouched beside her and put a hand on her shoulder, peering at her worriedly.

"I'm okay," Ruby said. "I know where they are."

The rest of the group stopped arguing and gathered around her.

"Weiss is in the tunnels underneath the city. There's a bunch of people guarding her," Ruby said. "Blake's in the Middle Ring with Adam. He's about to do something terrible."

Yang flinched. "Something terrible, like…?"

"Like bringing down the walls between the rings. He already did it with the one separating the Lower and Middle ones. Now he's coming this way to finish the job."

"Why would he do that?" Jaune asked.

"It's a message. No more walls, and he's making sure everyone knows who brought them down," Cinder said. "That's how he plans to make the city his. And it's going to work… _unless_."

She looked significantly at Ruby. The Avatar rubbed her eyes for a moment, then got up with help from Pyrrha.

"We need to split up," Ruby said. "One of you comes with me to find Weiss. The rest goes to stop Adam and get Blake back."

"Ruby, you can't go rescue anyone with your leg the way it is. You could do some permanent damage if you're not careful," Yang said, crossing her arms.

"I'll _be_ careful," Ruby said vehemently. "There's no discussion, I'm the only one who knows where Weiss is."

"I can find her," Pyrrha said. "She's underground, yes? Then it shouldn't be a problem for me."

"It's not that simple!" Ruby shook herself free from Pyrrha's grip and glared at her. "There's a bunch of tunnels! You could spend a whole day down there and never find her!"

"I'll take Cinder with me, then. I'm sure we can figure things out together." Pyrrha looked at Cinder. "Right?"

Cinder kept her reaction to a minimum, though her displeasure at the mere suggestion was obvious. "I think your priorities are terribly wrong," she said. "But fine. I'll help however I can."

"Great. Meanwhile…" Pyrrha looked at Ruby. "You, Jaune, and Yang go stop Adam."

Ruby opened her mouth to object, but a severe look from Yang stopped her, and she nodded grudgingly.

"I don't like this… But I guess we don't have any other choice," Jaune said. "We need a place to meet up after. Preferably somewhere distant from the golem-guy currently taking a nap with the badger-moles."

"The city gates?" Yang suggested. "I'm not saying we're gonna have to run, but…"

The ground rumbled.

"Speak of the devil," Jaune said nervously, tapping the grass with the tip of his boot. "We should go now." He looked at Yang and took out his sword. "Can you help Ruby walk?"

Yang nodded wordlessly, grabbed Ruby's arm and hooked it around her neck. Wincing, Ruby let most of her weight fall onto her sister. It didn't make the pain go away, but she could think straighter, at least.

"Pyrrha, I think there's an entrance to the tunnels near the back of the palace. Might be the way they went to take Weiss away," Ruby said. "It's not that much help, I know, but…"

"If the White Fang were there, I can track them," Cinder said off-handedly. She fixed her bow behind her back and tucked her hair behind her ear, then looked up at Ruby. "I'll get your princess back. In the meanwhile… try not to die."

Cinder's expression seemed to soften, but it was for such a brief moment, Ruby couldn't be sure whether that was real, or she was just seeing what she wanted to see. By the time she thought about saying something, Cinder had already turned and marched out of the garden.

Pyrrha looked in the direction Cinder had gone, then back at her friends, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't quite decide on what exactly. Finally, she mumbled something under her breath, stepped forward, and pulled Jaune into a quick kiss. Without another word, she raced after Cinder.

Jaune stood like a statue, simply facing forward while blinking every once in a while… until the ground rumbled again, and his expression morphed into one of absolute bravery and determination. He turned to look at Ruby and Yang and, taking out his sword, pointed at the exit.

"Alright! Yang, you help Ruby. Ruby, you keep your eyes open, tell us if anything's wrong. I'll cover you two if things get hairy," he said. "Come on! The city is at risk!"

He waited for them to show they understood, then walked away. A moment later, Yang followed, carrying Ruby along.

"Wow," Yang said in Ruby's ear. "When did he get all noble and heroic? I mean, the gorgeous girlfriend must have something to do with it, but _damn_."

"I don't know," Ruby grunted. "We've all done a lot of growing." Everyone but her, that is - but she kept that to herself. "I just hope we all make it out of this okay in the end."

* * *

The Lower Wall had fallen easily. With the soldiers that guarded its perimeter _mysteriously_ gone, there was nothing impeding the faunus of the White Fang from marching up to it and bringing it down in one phenomenal feat of earthbending might.

The shattering of the stones as they fell to the ground was heard across miles, and the cloud of dust that rose sky high could be seen from far outside the city. There wasn't a moment of silence afterward, the faunus barely taking a moment to bask in the glory before moving onward through the zone of destruction they'd made.

As the group moved, they were joined by new people, both faunus and human, and they were welcomed with open arms. There was a spirit of triumph in the air that neither race nor fear could suppress. This was a momentous occasion, a change of such magnitude that had been held as nothing but a dream for generations – and it was happening, and they were together in making it a reality.

They walked, and the city trembled. Vale would never be the same.

* * *

Taiyang slowed to a halt, cursing under his breath as another wave of tremors traveled beneath his feet. By the corner of his vision, he saw a figure fall to the ground, and he ran to it, fighting through the crowd that ran from and toward the approaching mob.

"Hey! Get up, quick!" He grabbed the fallen man's arm and helped him to his feet, then pulled him aside to an alley before anyone could collide with them. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you, I'm fine. Lost my balance is all." The man looked up at him with beady eyes, and Taiyang realized he was quite old – too old to be anywhere near what was happening, that was certain. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"I'm nobody. Just a helpful stranger," Taiyang said. "Sir, I think you should get far away from here. Is there anywhere you can stay until this thing's over?"

"My house isn't far, but-" The old man grimaced, his chin trembling ever so slightly. "My granddaughter is out there. She said she was gonna go join the – the revolution, she said. Just took off! I have to find her. If she got hurt, her mother…"

"I understand, believe me," Taiyang said. "But the White Fang isn't being very careful with what they're doing. This place is gonna get very dangerous soon. You could get seriously hurt."

The old man shut his mouth firmly and shook his head. Taiyang held back a sigh. Going to the end of the alley, he peeked around the corner and saw the commotion hadn't lessened in the slightest. If anything, it had only gotten worse, and the White Fang's arrival was eminent with the increasing instability of the earth.

"Sir." Taiyang returned to the old man and put his hands on his shoulders. "Do you believe your granddaughter is strong?"

"I… Yes, I do," the old man said. "She's young, but she's strong. Stronger than she ought to be, the poor thing."

"Then you have to believe she'll be fine," Taiyang said. "She would be heartbroken if you got hurt because you went looking for her, wouldn't she?"

"Yes… I suppose she would." The old man nodded. "You're right. I have to do right by her."

Taiyang stepped back, smiling. The old man started walking towards the other end of the alley, but stopped to turn and look back at him.

"Thank you so much, stranger," he said. "You really are helpful, you know?"

Taiyang shrugged. "Don't mention it. I also happen to have a lot of doing right to… well, _do_."

The old man bowed his head gratefully and hurried away. Taiyang waited until he was out of sight to exit the alley. He looked at the running mass of people, wondering how he would ever get through that to get to the palace.

"Hey! Mister Taiyang!"

Taiyang looked around, trying to find the source of the voice, but no one was as much as glancing at him. Had someone really called him? And they knew his name? He didn't like the thought of that.

"Fire Dad!"

Taiyang looked up and saw Sun perched at the edge of a nearby rooftop. Breathing a sigh of relief, Taiyang walked over, craning his neck to talk with the faunus.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" he asked. "I thought you said you were going ahead to the palace!"

"You told me the same thing!" Sun yelled. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"It doesn't matter!" Taiyang said. "Why did you stop me?"

"Well, here's the thing." Sun's tail shot straight up, curling and uncurling nervously at the tip. "I went over to the restaurant to check up on my guys and Ilia was there. She's a friend – well, more like a regular, I don't think she likes me – she's Blake's friend!"

"Okay." Taiyang crossed his arms. "And that's important because…?"

"Because _she_ was over near the wall when it came down, and she told me she saw Blake there, except she didn't look like she wanted to be there," Sun said. "I think Adam – the bad guy – is holding her prisoner or something. Blake, I mean. Not Ilia. That would make no sense."

"I got that," Taiyang said. "What do you suggest we do?"

"I don't know! I just know if Adam has Blake, then…" Sun shook his head. "I thought you would have a plan or something."

Taiyang breathed in deeply, looking towards the palace. The way there would be difficult, but the opposite, _towards_ the crazy mob, that would be even more dangerous. And he would be lying if he said he didn't have a strong preference of who to help first.

"Here's the plan," he said, looking up at Sun again. "You go and find somewhere safe to stay. Your restaurant's big, right? Keep it open for anyone who needs shelter."

"Okay. Sounds great," Sun said. "What about you?"

"I'll go save Blake."

"…How, exactly?" Sun asked.

"That's a great question," Taiyang said. "Go do your job."

Sun stood up and looked at him unsurely for a moment, then nodded and ran away, hopping from one house to the next.

Taiyang turned away from the palace and cracked his knuckles, shaking his head in resignation. "Here goes nothing."

* * *

The underground was trickier to navigate than Pyrrha had expected, which had been quite a lot already. The tunnels branched off constantly and with seemingly no pattern. If it weren't for her earthbending affinities, she would have lost all sense of direction minutes into the expedition. As such, and Pyrrha was embarrassed to admit it, even if only to herself, Cinder was the one doing most of the work.

There were torches scattered throughout the tunnels, vestiges of a time long gone when the system had been widely used by the people of Vale. Use of them had been abandoned since then, except for a select few which had been lit recently. The embers had already faded, but Cinder could perceive the leftover heat in the otherwise damp underground air. The path was almost obvious to her.

Relying on Cinder like that bothered Pyrrha, though after minutes of the firebender not saying a word expect to warn about a sudden turn or a drop in temperature, Pyrrha was beginning to feel more troubled about her own attitude. Cinder wasn't making her displeasure a secret, but she wasn't complaining either. Pyrrha couldn't forget what Cinder had done to Ruby, much less forgive it, but maybe she was judging her too harshly…

Another branch in the path appeared, and Pyrrha watched Cinder closely to see which direction she would choose. The last thing she wanted was to get left behind in the darkness. But unlike every other branch before, Cinder didn't immediately make a choice, instead stopping before the two tunnels and lowering her flame a little, her eyes flickering from left to right studiously.

"What's the matter?" Pyrrha asked. "Did we lose the trail…?"

"No. Just the opposite," Cinder said, a hint of displeasure in her voice. "Both tunnels have been in use. There's a subtle difference in heat between each, that I can tell. Now, as to which one leads to our damsel in distress…"

"Wouldn't it be the hotter one? The path used last." Pyrrha frowned. "Or not. Weiss could have been taken one way, then another party came through the other…"

"Exactly. If we knew more about the White Fang's activities, we'd be able to make a more studied decision, but…" Cinder clucked her tongue. "I hate to say it, but we may have to make a guess. Time is not on our side." She looked back at Pyrrha. "The honor is yours."

Pyrrha looked at the two tunnels, hating that her friend's safety depended on sheer randomness. Not only Weiss either. If Pyrrha and Cinder were forced to backtrack, then they would take even longer to reunite with Ruby. The whole group would be at risk then.

Wait. The whole group…

" _Time_ , Pyrrha," Cinder said irritably. "Nevermind, I'll make the-"

"They took Blake prisoner too, but Ruby said she wasn't with Weiss. So maybe they took her to the same place as Weiss, then back through here to the surface – or maybe someone passed through here to go get her," Pyrrha said. "It's not certain, but it's better than just guessing, right?"

Cinder took a moment to think, then nodded. "The hotter path, then."

Cinder took the left path, and Pyrrha followed her, relieved to be on the move again. Even if she was wrong, it was better to realize it fast than spend ages worrying about possibly making a mistake. And Cinder agreed with her, so her logic couldn't be _that_ bad.

"I can tell you're agitated," Cinder said suddenly. "It doesn't bother me. But please, if you have something to say, go right ahead."

"I'm… note sure what you mean," Pyrrha replied.

"You don't like that I'm helping, which is perfectly understandable," Cinder said. "You don't trust me, and you're right not to. Even if I gave you all the reasons in the world, you should neither forget nor forgive. You know that." She paused. "You have a good head about those things, much more than all your friends – even the princess. She thinks with her heart too much for her own good. Not you. That's what I like about you, Pyrrha. Unfortunately…"

Pyrrha waited for Cinder to continue, but she seemed to have become lost in her own thoughts.

"Sounds like you're the one who has something to say," Pyrrha noted cautiously. "Please, do finish. What is it that you don't like about me?"

"You know not to trust me, and yet, here I am. You've had plenty of opportunities to ditch me or get rid of me. Not just today, mind you," Cinder said. "I think you could take me down, if you really gave it your all."

Pyrrha leered at the back of Cinder's neck. After the two bouts she'd had with Hazel, she was probably in a state for Pyrrha to defeat her, that was true. Pyrrha was certainly in her element, too. "And…?"

" _And_ , Ruby is soft. Her softness is going to get her killed when she's forced make a tough decision. Her friends aren't going to help her with that. I tried, but…" Cinder shook her head. "I was hoping _you_ would make a good example for her to follow, at least. But you not only accepted my help, you asked for it." She looked over her shoulder, the light of her fire reflecting off her eyes. "What does _that_ teach her?"

All of a sudden, the reality of Pyrrha's situation hit her. She was alone with _Cinder_ , her only guiding light _Cinder_. _Cinder_ , the Fire Lord's former right hand, unparalleled master of fire and lighting. _Cinder_ , who had gone from friend to for in the blink of an eye.

Cinder smirked and faced forward again, shining her fire at a tunnel they passed. Pyrrha pursed her lips, her fear vanishing as she realized scaring her had been exactly Cinder's intention. A lesson, she supposed - because it was always about a lesson with Cinder.

"What happened to you?"

Cinder glanced back at Pyrrha. "Excuse me?"

"I don't understand you, Cinder," Pyrrha said. "You help, but you act like it's a waste of your time. So why are you here? Why are you so bothered that we're coming to rescue Weiss?"

"This _bothers_ me because, if Ruby had simply done what I advised her to do, we wouldn't be in this situation," Cinder said. "But she spared Hazel, for no reason other than to protect her own sense of morality. So now we have to run to rescue Weiss, with the possibility of Hazel appearing anytime to crush us beneath his feet – all the while, Ruby is going to rescue _another friend_ , and I already know she won't do what's necessary with Taurus either."

As she listened to Cinder speak, Pyrrha couldn't help but start to feel sorry for her. Maybe Jaune's barb about Cinder not understanding friendship had more truth to it than he realized.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Cinder," Pyrrha said. "Maybe if you had talked to Ruby properly about your worries, she would have listened."

"I attacked her, and she didn't understand. What makes you think _words_ will get through her thick skull?" Cinder asked.

"I don't know," Pyrrha said. "Why do you think someone always needs to get hurt for them to learn something?"

Cinder stopped in her tracks, the flame above her hand shrinking to the size of a pebble. Pyrrha stepped back, reaching for her shield instinctively. The sudden drop in lighting meant the only thing she could see was the tip of Cinder's fingers below the fire, and the tresses of raven hair that curved around a tense shoulder.

The back of Pyrrha's foot collided with a wall, sending a jolt of pain up her leg – and she gasped, a rumbling sensation coursing through her body before it rejoined the earth.

Cinder's fire returned to form, and she turned around, looking at Pyrrha as if nothing had happened. "What's wrong?"

"I felt something," Pyrrha said. She stomped on the ground and felt the shockwaves spread through the tunnels, bouncing off buried crystals and snaking through hidden veins, until finally… "Yes! I feel… people!"

She ran forward a little until she came across a tunnel, Cinder following close behind. "How many people exactly?" the firebender asked.

"I'm not sure." Pyrrha retrieved her shield from her back and fixed it on her arm. "Not nearly enough for them to have a fair chance. Follow me!"

* * *

"Spread out! I want ten people for every one earthbender!" Adam shouted. "Protect them at all costs! At my signal, we'll bring down this wall, and then we march on to claim our throne!"

The White Fang roared, running past him towards the wall, splitting to both sides, the earthbenders taking position at the base. Adam stayed where he was, waiting to take position at the very center of the wall. Just like at the Lower Wall, his strike would be the cue for the others to follow. It would be just as powerful a shockwave, and it all started with him.

His smug grin wouldn't leave his lips, and that, more than anything else, was what distressed Blake. He could go on and on about how this wasn't something he wanted, only something that was necessary, but it would take a fool to believe him. Whatever little sympathy she'd had left for him was now completely gone, and all she could do was watch as he brought ruin all around himself.

"You should smile, Blake," he said casually, his eyes travelling from the base of the wall to the very top, the mirth on his face growing. "This isn't something you get to see every day. Every _lifetime_ , even."

Blake pursed her lips. "I'll smile when you're defeated, and all your work is undone. I'll be _laughing_ with joy."

"Well, that would do you good, to show some emotion for once." Adam chuckled. "Too bad that's not gonna happen. Do you really think anyone can stop me at this point? Because if you're banking on your little Avatar and her friends' help… They have their own problems to deal with right now. Sorry to say, Blake, but I don't think you're a priority right now."

Blake glared at him, moving her arms in another attempt to loosen the rope around her wrists. She knew his objective was to rile her up, but what she wouldn't give to hit him in the head right then and there. It wouldn't do her any good, but damn if she was going to let him get away without _some_ punishment.

"Face it, Blake. You cast your lot with the wrong people, and now you're paying for it," Adam said. "They've left you. But I haven't. You don't need to like what I'm doing, but I will accept you back… as soon as you apologize, and swear you'll never defy me again."

"You're insane," Blake said. "No, I take that back. You're not insane, you're just-"

"The person who spared your life." Adam whirled around and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. "So maybe you should be a little more _grateful_."

Blake tried to look away, but his stare was magnetic, always attracting her eyes back to his. Despite herself, she found herself opening her mouth, an apology rising to the tip of her tongue – and she grit her teeth, shaking and feeling the burning of tears in her eyelids.

"Let the girl go."

Adam broke eye contact, and Blake was free to look away again. In the field between them and the wall stood Taiyang. His face was inscrutable, but Blake noticed a fire in his eyes which she had seen but a handful of times before, when Yang had been in mortal peril.

"…Who the hell are you?" Adam asked, still holding Blake's chin.

Taiyang didn't move, his eyes dead set on Adam. "I'm Taiyang Xiao Long, once General of the Fire Nation Army. Once Royal Consort. Lost both titles because I couldn't get with the program, but a title is just a title." He clenched his fists, and they ignited with radiant flames. "The man behind them is never lost."

He took a step forward. The people gathered around them stilled, the air carrying angry and fearful whispers. Adam grabbed his katana with his free hand.

"I told you to let the girl go," Taiyang said.

Adam looked at Blake. His grin resurfacing, he released her and shoved her away, and Blake nearly fell on the floor. Metal scratched against metal when Adam unsheathed his sword and held it in front of him, the sunlight reflecting off its blade.

"Mister Xiao Long, please," Blake spoke up, panic setting in as she noticed other weapons appearing amidst the surrounding crowd. "You don't have to do this. I'll be fine!"

"It's alright, Blake. I would never leave you behind," Taiyang said, giving her a little smile. "Besides, you've seen me in action before. Why are you worried?" He raised his fists, taking a ready stance. "Also, thanks for sending Ruby my way. Yang needed that."

"I think she needs you to stay intact more," Blake noted.

"Good point," Taiyang said. "I won't let her down."  
"Enough talk." Adam clenched his fist, lifting a chunk of rock off the earth and bringing it to his side. "Let me show you what happens to Fire Nation scum inside my city."

* * *

Pyrrha ran into the cave, her shield already launching from her hand and bouncing on two White Fang goons before returning to her. Cinder arrived a second later, letting fly an arrow from her bow to pin another faunus to a rock.

The cave came alive with sound, the faunus turning to face the intruders and unleashing an array of earthbending projectiles upon them. Pyrrha raised her shield to defend herself, and Cinder took refuge behind her, holding her bow low.

"See that?" Cinder asked, nodding towards a far corner of the cave.

Pyrrha made to peer over her shield, but stopped when a rock just barely clipped her ear. Instead, she stomped on the ground and paid attention to the area Cinder had indicated. Sure enough, there was a huge metal box there, and inside it, a moving person.

"Weiss," Pyrrha said. She looked sideways, judging the distance to the cage. She could make it there, but it would be slow, and someone was surely to get there first in response to take Weiss hostage.

"Get her free," Cinder said. "I'll cover you."

Pyrrha hesitated for a second, then nodded and lowered her shield. She took off running towards the cage, initially thwarted by a shower of stones, but Cinder took action shortly, dropping her bow and unleashing a barrage of fire that forced the White Fang to contend with her.

Making it to the cage, Pyrrha slammed her hands against the metal and felt for the numerous layers within. Burying one foot on the ground, she pressed against the outer wall with all her might, until finally the metal gave away under her fingers, and she spread her arms, tearing it apart in the most intense feat of metalbending she had ever managed.

"Pyrrha?" Weiss stared at her from inside the cage, hands hovering like claws at her sides, as if she had expecting a fight. "Pyrrha!"

The princess jumped at her, nearly taking Pyrrha to the ground, as she was still recovering.

"I'm so glad you're alright! I was here for so long I was beginning to think-" Weiss stopped, her eyes widening when she took a step back and saw no one beside Pyrrha. "Where's everyone else? Where's-"

A swirling fire illuminated the cave. Weiss' face flashed with a mishmash of emotions before it ultimately settled on an unbelieving fury.

"What is _she_ doing here?" she asked. "Why is she fighting the White Fang?"

"Cinder's on our side. It's a long story – just bear with her for now, okay?" Pyrrha said. "Ruby and the others are fine. They went to get rescue Blake on the surface."

"The others? You mean Jaune?" Weiss tilted her head confusedly.

"And Yang," Pyrrha replied, but that only seemed to cause more confusion to Weiss. "There's no time to explain. We're supposed to meet back with everyone at the city gates."

Weiss waved enthusiastically with a hand, glad to finally hear something she could plainly understand. "Let's get going, then! Can you make a way upward?"

Pyrrha looked at the ceiling. She had done crazier things. "Sure. But first, we've gotta get Cinder clear."

" _Or_ we could just leave her here!" Weiss exclaimed. "I don't care whose side she says she's on, I don't want her-"

Suddenly, everything around them shook, and a thunderous noise echoed from the tunnel Pyrrha and Cinder had come from. The firebender stopped her attack at once and looked behind her, then at Pyrrha.

"Go!" she shouted. "I'll slow him down!"

"What does she mean?" Weiss asked.

"That noise was General Hazel. He'll be here any second," Pyrrha said. "He's made of stone."

"Oh." Weiss blinked. "Well, I like Cinder's plan."

Pyrrha stood frozen for a moment, not sure what to do as the rumbling intensified with every passing second. Finally, when a stalactite fell from the ceiling and shattered on the floor, she made up her mind and hooked an arm around Weiss' waist.

"Hold on tight."

"Wait, can we talk about this-"

Pyrrha bent her knees and thrust her free arm upward, and a spire surged beneath her feet, taking them towards the ceiling at a breakneck pace. Just as they were about to be smushed against the rocks, Pyrrha closed her fist, and the earth parted above her. She could have made a path more efficiently by finding the weak links within the rocks and rupturing them, but she didn't have the time for that. Her body suffered for it, but somehow, by dumb luck or sheer force of will, she managed to come back out the surface just a minute later.

" _Holy_ -" Weiss dropped to her knees, gasping for air. "You're worse than Ruby."

Pyrrha stumbled for a moment, trembling from feet to hips. Looking around, she couldn't immediately identify where they were, but a nearby cloud of dust in the sky told her they couldn't be far from the Lower Wall – or what remained of it.

"Okay. This is good. Good work, Pyrrha." Weiss stood up. "Here, let me help you walk. We need to get to the gates, right?"

"W-wait," Pyrrha said. "I've gotta get Cinder first."

"No you don't!" Weiss said. "Let's just go! She can find her own way back. If she's not at the gates, then – we can search for her later when we're all together."

Pyrrha swallowed dry. Weiss' plan was tempting, but the holes in it were plenty – surely by design. If they didn't do something to help Cinder now, they would never see her again.

Saving herself from a pointless discussion, Pyrrha stepped back and dropped back into the hole she'd made. She held against the sides to slow her fall, but the descent was still much faster than the rise, and in seconds she saw the faint lights of the cave beneath her.

Pyrrha fell from the hole and spun around, bending her knees to soften her landing. Before she could fully reorient herself, a stray fireball came flying her way, forcing her to jump to the side.

Looking up, she quickly found Cinder at the other end of the cave, dancing backwards to avoid Hazel's fingers as he advanced on her. Every other step, she would strike him with a fireball, but those seemed to have no effect on him. He wasn't even angry – the look on his face was blank, and he moved with a cold ruthlessness, for he knew that, sooner or later, Cinder would make a mistake, and he would catch her.

"Cinder!" Pyrrha shouted. She jumped forward and threw her shield, and it arced towards the fighting pair, cutting through the air with its spinning motion. Cinder ducked just in time, and the shield curved above her head and struck the general in the chin.

"That's it!" Cinder yelled. "Eat this, you bastard!" She thrust her hand aside, gathering lightning in her fingers, then jumped and pressed her open palm against Hazel's face. A shower of sparks exploded from the point of impact, becoming blinding as Cinder kept pushing the general back, her feet planted on his chest.

When the last sparks faded, Cinder drew back her hand and let go of Hazel. Before her feet hit the ground, however, Hazel extended an arm and seized hold of her neck.

Cinder grabbed his hand, trying to pry his fingers off her, but his grip was as firm as stone. "Let me – go! – you…"

"Did you think you were invincible? Did you _think_ there wouldn't be consequences for your actions?" Hazel asked, his baritone voice echoing throughout the cave. "I was not unkind, but you could not accept a scenario where you did not come out on top. This end is of your own making."

Cinder tightened her grip around his hand, steam starting to escape from under her fingers, but the heat couldn't pierce through the stone beneath his skin. "You wouldn't – dare!"

Watching from afar, Pyrrha saw the fingers around Cinder's throat stiffen. Panicking, she didn't think of a plan of attack and simply sprinted towards the general. Hazel turned his head to look at her, seemingly amused that she was trying something, and brought a foot down on the ground.

A rocky wall exploded before Pyrrha, only missing her by a step or two. She barely registered that, adrenaline fueling her as she reacted on instinct and jumped, kicking off the wall to gain further altitude. At the tip of the spire, she kicked again and boosted herself towards Hazel and Cinder, passing over their heads and landing behind the general.

The rough landing sent shockwaves up her body, but somehow she took those and carried them into an all-out punch on Hazel's lower back. The kickback sent her flying backwards into a wall, but it was not vain, as the general dropped Cinder and went tumbling on the cave floor, leaving a trail of hand-sized rocks behind him.

Cinder grabbed her throat, coughing violently. She looked at Hazel as he tried to find the strength to stand again, then at the hole in the ceiling.

Pyrrha closed her eyes, and when she tried to open them again… she couldn't. Exhaustion and hurt overpowered her, and then terror as she realized she was going to pass out and be left behind…

"Come – come on!" Cinder's voice brought her back to full consciousness, and she managed to open her eyes to see the firebender bend down to grab her arms and pull her to her feet. "That was amazing, but he's not going to stay down forever."

Cinder stumbled with Pyrrha until they were under the hole in the ceiling, then wrapped arm around her and ignited a stream of fire downwards, taking them up. A minute later, they arrived at the surface, and Cinder dropped Pyrrha beside a bewildered Weiss.

"…Don't shove me back in the hole," Cinder said.

Weiss looked at her, then the hole, her eyes narrowing.

"Please."

* * *

Yang grunted, taking better hold of Ruby so they could walk faster, which was hard when every movement, tiny as they might be, caused her to pale and nearly shout from the pain. Being familiar with broken limbs herself, Yang couldn't blame Ruby for being slow, but she was becoming worried about them getting to the gates before the others panicked and went looking for them.

"I-I'm sorry," Ruby said, gritting her teeth. "I don't know what's w-wrong with me. I was doing just fine before, but now it's like-"

"That's normal," Yang said. "You know how when you're in a fight and you get hit, it doesn't hurt that much, but later you feel it ten times worse? It's the same thing here. It's like a… body thing."

"Is that right?" Ruby said, awe in her voice. "Wow, Yang, you're so knowledgeable about things."

Yang smiled, puffing up her chest. "I am! Just you wait, I have many valuable lessons to impart upon you, little sister." She paused, blowing air between her lips. "As soon as we get out of this mess."

"Guys?" Jaune called, stopping a few steps ahead of them. "I mean, uh, girls. There's the Upper Wall. It's still there, so that's good…" He pointed. "But I _think_ something is going on."

At their current pace, they would be at the wall in five minutes, perhaps. But as Jaune pointed out, there _was_ something happening at the other side – it took a few seconds for it to happen, but eventually a flash of fire surged over the top the wall, fading before it reached the clouds.

"It might be a fight," Jaune said. "But I don't see how-"

"Dad," Yang said, eyes widening. "Jaune! Take Ruby!"

"What?" Jaune turned, and before he could object, Ruby had been transferred over to his hands.

"Hey! I'm a person, not a doll!" Ruby yelled. "Also, a delicate maiden, so _watch it_!" She swatted at Jaune's hands until she was more comfortable, then gaped at Yang. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going ahead to meet Dad and save him from whatever dumb thing he did this time!" Yang exclaimed. "Meet me there, you two!"

She took off running towards the wall, sprinting across the field in less than a minute. She reached the gate to the Middle Ring, which was deserted, and passed through to the other side.

As she exited the shadows of the gate, Yang was immediately greeted by a show of fire, stone and steel. Her father stood in the center of a crowd, enemies coming at him from every side, and he did his very best to deflect them – or so it would appear to any other person but Yang. She could tell he was holding back, using just enough power to drive off his assailants. He had to, or else he would hurt the other people gathered around them.

Facing him from a short distance was a redhaired man, the upper half of his face covered by a mask. He held a sword low in right hand, spinning its handle leisurely, just enjoying watching her father struggle. It took a moment for Yang to realize who he was, but when she did, a chill ran down her spine – Adam Taurus.

And behind him, surrounded by a pair of armed faunus, her wrists tied together, was Blake. A multitude of emotions surged through Yang as she gazed at her from a distance, her throat feeling dry as of a sudden. Then her father released a fiery blast that made her cheeks flare from the heat, and she blinked, coming back to reality.

"Dad!"

The battle stopped as she walked forward, every eye falling on her. Taiyang lowered his fists, and Adam looked at her curiously, his lips curving in a slight smile. Blake's ears shot up, then pressed down on her hair, her face twisting into a pained expression.

"Yang! Glad you're here!" her father said, keeping a grin for only a second before he noticed she was alone. "Where's Ruby?"

"She's fine. Will be here any second," Yang said. "What's going on here?"

"Mister Taurus is in the middle of a little revolution," Taiyang said. "Unfortunately, his justice seems to include keeping innocent prisoners."

"Oh, she's hardly innocent," Adam said, flicking his sword in Blake's direction.

Yang scowled, reaching her father and passing him. "Excuse me, I'll be borrowing this." She bent down and took a sword from the hands of a fallen faunus, and after testing its balance for a moment, decided to keep it.

Adam watched her come to a stop a few paces before him, tilting his head mockingly. "What's this now? Are you going to declare your titles like dear daddy did?"

"I'm Yang." She raised her borrowed blade. "Let her go."

"Or what?" Adam asked. "You'll fight me?"

"I'll beat you in front of everyone here," Yang said.

"So confident. The perfect firebender." Adam grinned. "This one's a dear friend of yours, isn't she, Blake?"

Blake's face lit up with alarm. "Adam, don't! Please, just-" She stopped midway through her sentence and faced Yang instead. "Yang, just leave! I don't need help, please, just leave and everything will be-"

Adam dashed forward, swinging his katana, and Yang had only a split second to bring her own sword up to block. The bones of her arms rang from the clash, but she had no time to rest as Adam struck again, bringing his blade in a sweep downward then back up, so astoundingly fast Yang saw only a flicker of movement.

Yang hopped back, her confidence draining quickly as she realized how outmatched she was. Time had rusted her skills with a sword, and even without that, it was clear that Adam was more skilled than her. But she didn't need to be better – she only needed one moment of triumph, and she would fight like hell for that!

Taking the initiative, Yang advanced on Adam with a wild swing. His face showed shock for an instant, but his sword rose accordingly, and she bounced back. She went in again without pause, this time making a feint to the right then aiming at his leg, but he stepped aside and clashed his pommel against the side of her sword, tearing it from her grip.

"Weren't you going to beat me in front of everyone?" Adam scoffed. "Looks like the tables have turned on you, princess."

He stepped back and kicked her sword back to her. Yang stared at him, waiting for him to spring his trap, but he only waited patiently, even holding his sword behind his back. Swallowing her pride, Yang picked up her weapon and pointed it at him.

"I'm sorry about humiliating you this way," Adam said. "But… you all but asked for it, didn't you?"

Yang took a step forward, only to jump back as he swung his katana and almost caught her with it. Trying to control her shaking, she lowered her sword and looked him straight in the eye. "Let her go."

"Why do you care about her so much? Don't you know she'll just hurt you? _Abandon you_?" Adam said. "She'll stab you in the back and not feel a thing about it. That's what she does. Isn't that right, Blake?"

Blake looked at Yang and shook her head, silently begging her to leave. Yang held back a gasp, her grip on her sword loosening.

"You know what? I'll just spare you the pain," Adam said. "This is a mercy, princess."

He moved forward, crushing Yang's fingers with his pommel, and her sword fell to the ground between them. She stumbled back and, in doing so, her eyes turned upward – and as if the whole world had slowed down, she watched his sword descend towards her outstretched arm…

"STOP!"

A gust of air blew through the area, knocking Adam back. Yang stumbled away with unsure steps, feeling cold and hot at the same time, her stomach turning and turning…

"Everyone stop!"

Ruby limped into the middle of the crowd, using her staff for support. Jaune was close behind her, his sword out.

"This is crazy!" Ruby yelled, looking at Adam. "You're hurting people! Innocent people! This has to stop!"

"I'm not hurting anyone. This is a moment that's been in the making for years!" Adam exclaimed. "Walk away, Avatar! This is none of your business!"

"What the heck are you talking about?" Ruby said. "You're destroying the city! How's that any good for anyone?"

"I'm destroying the walls that kept the people of Vale as prisoners! We've been treated like worthless animals for far too long, but no more!" Adam said. "But of course, you don't understand that. As always, the Avatar doesn't know a thing about how things really are!"

"But you're…" Ruby shook her head. "You're the one who's-"

The crowd came to life around them, shouting in support of Adam and booing her. Ruby flinched and drew back into her cloak, her face a mask of pure shock. Taiyang rushed to her side, passing an arm around her shoulders and whispering something in her ear.

"That's enough!" Adam yelled, silencing the crowd. He glared at Yang, then returned his gaze to Ruby. "Take your family of Fire Nation scum and leave this city. You're not wanted here."

The crowd booed again, but this time, Ruby managed to keep hold of her nerves. "I'm not gonna let you go through with this."

"Yeah? And what are you going to do, beat me with your Avatar powers?" Adam said. "And after that? You're going to do the same to everyone here? Is _that_ what an Avatar does?"

Ruby clenched her fists around her staff, and for a moment, it looked as if she was going to do exactly as Adam suggested. Then her expression soured, and she looked to the ground in defeat.

"Let Blake go, and we'll leave."

Adam sighed. "That's not going to happen."

"Let her go!" Ruby shouted. "How is holding her hostage any good for the city, huh? You're just being a pathetic jerk!"

Adam smiled and looked at the crowd, as if expecting them to protest her again, but there was little sound from them. His smile faded, and with a wave of his hand, he ordered for Blake to be brought to him.

"Fine." He grabbed Blake's arm and cut her wrists free with his sword, then shoved her way. "You're not worth the trouble anyway."

Blake stumbled to a halt, staring fixedly at the ground with blank eyes. Then, her head and shoulders low, she walked over to Ruby and stopped, dead silent.

"That's it, then. Time to make your leave, Avatar," Adam said. "Unless you're going to break your word?"

Ruby scowled at him. "Come on, everyone. Let's go."

She walked away, supported by Taiyang, Jaune and Blake in tow. Yang followed a moment later, stopping to lock eyes with Adam as she passed him. He grinned and made a slight motion with his sword, and she left in a hurry, her cheeks burning.

Minutes later, when they hadn't made even a third of the way to the Lower Ring, they felt the ground rumble, and a cloud of dust rose to the skies behind them.

The Upper Wall had fallen.

* * *

The sun was setting by the time Ruby's group arrived at the city gates. They weren't there for a minute before they found the others – or, more accurately, Weiss saw them and all but shouted with joyful relief.

"You – you reckless idiots!" Weiss shouted, running up to Ruby and Jaune. "Did you know how awful I felt waiting for you? A-and I spent ages trapped underground, and you never came!" She looked at Ruby. "Good job, by the way! And I'm not being sarcastic, you actually showed sense for once and didn't fall into an obvious trap!"

"Oh. Uh, actually… I was going to go rescue you myself," Ruby mumbled. "They talked me out of it."

"Is that so? Well, I can't say I'm surprised." Weiss sighed. She rolled her eyes, and dragged Ruby into a hug immediately after.

"Watch the leg!" Ruby hissed.

"It's injured?" Weiss pouted. "I'll take a look at it later."

Ruby melted into the hug, thrilled to have her best friend back at last.

"Excuse me, but…" Yang butted in, peering at them closely. "Are you two always this affectionate?"

"What? No!" Weiss jumped away from Ruby, leaving Yang to catch her before she fell. "Good to see you, too, Yang!"

"Yes." Yang smirked. "Very good, apparently."

Weiss cleared her throat and went to hug Jaune, as if she had only then remembered he existed. Jaune didn't complain.

Ruby looked away and saw Pyrrha and Cinder approaching. Pyrrha stopped before her, looking like she was about to collapse and sleep where she stood, but she had a warm smile on her face nonetheless.

"See?" she said quietly. "Told you I was going to get her back."

"You did." Ruby smiled. "Thanks, Pyrrha."

"It was nothing." Pyrrha held her shoulder briefly, then nodded dreamily. "Excuse me while I go hug my boyfriend."

She smiled the doofiest smile Ruby had ever seen on her and walked to Jaune, practically shoving Weiss off him so she could take her place. Weiss complained. Loudly.

Ruby looked at Cinder, who had stopped a little distance from the group, turning her back to them. She couldn't exactly blame her, what with the positively vicious looks Yang was sending her way.

"Yaaang…" Ruby whined, trying to walk towards Cinder, only to have her sister lock her arms tight around her to keep her from going. "Let me! I don't wanna make a scene."

"You'll have to, and it won't work anyway," Yang said.

"Yang. Let your sister do what she wants," Taiyang said.

"Are you crazy?" Yang gawked at him. "I'm not letting her go anywhere near that snake!"

" _Yang_ ," Blake muttered beside her. "Come on."

Yang looked at the faunus, caught between being furious and perplexed that she had chosen to speak now of all times. " _Fine_." She released Ruby. "But you're walking on your own."

Ruby rolled her eyes and shuffled over to Cinder's side. She waited for the firebender to address her, because there was no doubt she had noticed her coming over, but Cinder didn't as much as look at her. Drawing a deep breath, Ruby let go of her staff with one hand and poked Cinder in the arm.

"Hi," she said. "Uhm… Thanks for helping Pyrrha save Weiss. That was really awesome of you to do."

Cinder finally looked at her, but her emotions were hard to read. But she wasn't happy, of that, Ruby was certain. "Hazel survived your attack. He nearly killed me."

"Oh. I'm… I'm sorry," Ruby said. "You're okay, though?"

"I said _nearly_ , did I not?" Cinder replied sharply. Her eyes scanned the sky over Vale. "Adam got what he wanted, obviously. Did you not reach him in time, or did you just let him do it?"

"There wasn't much choice…" Ruby looked at her feet. "I didn't _want_ this to happen…"

"…Yes. I know you didn't." Cinder sighed. "What's done is done. There's no point in weeping over it." She paused. "I suppose you'll have to leave the city forever now. And unless your friends have a sudden change of heart about me, we'll be going our separate ways."

"…No. You're coming with us," Ruby said. "Friends don't leave other friends behind. Didn't you learn this today?"

Cinder frowned, seemingly unable to decide how to feel about that. Ruby poked her with her staff, then took hold of her arm and dragged her back to the group.

"I think we've gotta go soon, guys!" she said. "The sun's setting! If we don't find somewhere good to sleep, the Grimm are gonna eat us!"

"Wow. That's some powerful imagery." Jaune gulped. "Consider me warned."

"She makes a good point," Taiyang said. "After what happened today, there's bound to be a lot of Grimm close to the city."

Yang glared at Cinder. "She's coming with us?"

"Yes, she is - we can have a group debate later!" Ruby said, drawing in air between her teeth. "My leg is killing me…"

Weiss walked over to support her. "You're impossible," she muttered. "Let's get going, you dolt."

* * *

Hazel leaned on the arm of Vale's throne, staring emotionlessly as Adam walked towards it, the noises of the rebellion fading beyond the palace's walls. The battle was won. The earth was coming to a rest. Change.

Change had been made reality.

"Today was a fateful day, General," Adam said. "This wouldn't have been possible without you. The White Fang owes you a great debt."

"Indeed, it does," Hazel said. "I will see that you pay it, in due time. But not today. For now, we all must heal."

"Yes." Adam grinned. "We must heal. And purge the diseases that infect our home."

In the blink of an eye, Adam unsheathed his sword and brought it in a wide arc towards Hazel.

The blade clashed against the General's neck and fell to the floor in pieces.

"…I have no personal interest in compensation or favors," Hazel said. "You will pay your debt to the Earth Kingdom. That is how I will be satisfied."

Hazel stood up, and Adam stepped back, all trace of braveness gone from his face and body.

"I care not for who reigns from this throne, and for whom, as long as they are a true child of the Earth Kingdom. Take your seat, Earth King. Do faunuskind proud," Hazel said. "I will be watching."

He stepped out, leaving Adam alone in the throne room. In the silence, Adam sat down, wincing and fidgeting as he adjusted to the roughness of the Earth Throne.

He smiled.

* * *

They left the city and trekked through the fields surrounding it without great trouble, even as the sun disappeared over the horizon and the darkness of night set in. Red eyes shone around them occasionally, but the size of their group seemed to discourage the Grimm from attacking. It was a disquieting feeling, to know they were being watched like prey.

With that unease building, and the immediate memory of what they had just gone through fresh in their minds, the joy of their being reunited quickly faded. Silence reigned, the only occasional word coming from Taiyang or Jaune as they watched for a place to take shelter.

They were passing by a small stream when Ruby's legs gave out, and Weiss had to draw on all her strength to keep her from going down completely. Taiyang rushed over and helped to sit Ruby down on the ground, careful not to strain her leg too much.

"I'm sorry… It really hurts," Ruby said shakily. "I just need a minute before we keep going…"

"You need _far more_ than a minute's rest," Weiss said, biting her lip. "Do you think it would be too much if I took you to that stream over there? I need water if I'm gonna be any help to you."

"I-I guess…" Ruby said.

"I can help with that," Taiyang said, crouching to pick her up in his arms, and started carrying her over to the stream. It was still uncomfortable, but it was much nicer than the limping she had been doing before.

He set her down at the shore, and Weiss knelt beside her. Before the princess could start examining her, however, Taiyang raised a hand and nodded towards the other side of the water, where a legion of red eyes blinked in the darkness.

"Help Ruby," Taiyang said, igniting a flame on his hand. "I'll take care of those, just to be sure."

He started crossing the stream, turning back to smile at Ruby as she mumbled for him to be careful. He reached the other side and disappeared. A moment later, his bending lit up the night, and a cacophony of roars and hissing smoke filled the air.

"It's nice that you got to meet him finally. As family, I mean. Yang, too," Weiss said. "I'm happy for you."

"Yeah… Something good had to happen today, I guess," Ruby said. "Thanks, universe."

Weiss nodded and looked down at Ruby's leg. She reached to touch it, stopping briefly to watch Ruby's reaction. Once she was sure they were on the same page, she laid down her hand.

"Tell me where it hurts," she said, pressing down on Ruby's ankle.

Ruby threw her head back, cringing. "E-everywhere!"

"I'm sorry! Where it hurts _most_ , I should have said," Weiss said, tapping her fingers nervously. "I don't know how much I can do about a broken leg, but I suppose a good starting point would be to know where the breaking point is. I know it hurts, but…"

"I-it's okay." Ruby drew a deep breath. "I trust you."

After a moment's hesitation, Weiss started feeling her leg again, moving up meticulously. Ruby did her best not to make a sound, not wanting to freak Weiss out, even if it she was almost fainting from the pain.

"T-there!" she gasped. "Right there, I think."

"Here?" Weiss gently tapped the flesh above Ruby's knee, then nodded and drew a string of water from the spring. She gathered it in both hands until she had a sizeable sphere, then lowered her hands again and let the water fall onto Ruby's leg, wrapping around it and clinging to her skin, almost as if it had a will of its own.

Weiss stared at her handiwork, uncertainty flashing on her face for a second before she furrowed her brow in concentration. The water took on a soft glow, and Ruby felt a slight tingling in her leg. Weiss glanced at her face, shaking her head when there was no great reaction to be found. Ruby saw her arms stiffen, and the water's glow intensified, its light even revealing the grass around them.

The effect was immediate, the tingling on Ruby's leg turning into a sensation so intense, she had to fight to keep herself sitting upright. It was as if she had submerged her leg in hot spring water, except the feeling spread equally throughout her whole body, overpowering her senses.

It wasn't until Weiss spoke that Ruby noticed how weird she looked, her eyes and mouth wide open, and shoulders trembling like she was caught in a winter storm. "I take it it's working, then."

Ruby smacked her lips closed. "I-I think I can feel my b-bones mending…"

"Don't be silly," Weiss said, though a little satisfied smirk did shape her lips. "This might take a moment, so please don't move your leg. Tell me if anything changes."

Ruby nodded. She hung back carefully, supporting the weight of her body with her arms, and let herself get accustomed to the sensation while Weiss carried on with the healing. She tried not to stare at her too much, but the distress she had been putting aside all day long was catching up to her now, and she couldn't help but think about how lost she would have been if Weiss weren't with her now.

Not only Weiss, too. Ruby looked aside, locating the others just a few meters away from them. Jaune had sat down on the grass, his eyes scanning the darkness sharply for any Grimm that got too daring, while Pyrrha leaned on him, appearing supremely tired and content at the same time.

Blake had sat down too, though she appeared more unnerved than alert, and Ruby didn't think that was because of the Grimm. Yang was pacing around with her arms crossed, throwing sharps looks towards Blake, but she had yet to direct a single word to her. Ruby couldn't lie, she was worried… Whatever was going on between those two, it couldn't be good.

As for Cinder… She was standing a little farther still, her back turned towards the others. Ruby had tried to talk to her during the trip so far, but Cinder very clearly didn't want to converse with her. She was angry, that much Ruby knew. Angry at Hazel. Angry about what had happened to Vale. And, maybe more than anything, angry at Ruby.

They'd have to talk about that soon. Not today, with everyone so on edge. And probably alone, without the rest of the group listening. That was a scary thought, but Ruby wanted to make amends with Cinder, and she would go very far to make that happen.

"Weiss, I think I screwed up."

Weiss looked up at her with a familiar look on her face. _Whatever do you mean this time?_

"I let Vale fall. I could have stopped Adam and the White Fang and Hazel, but…" Ruby grimaced. "I just let them get away with it."

"Ruby, there was nothing you could have done," Weiss said. "You got put into a terrible situation with no winning strategies. Considering the odds, we couldn't have asked for a better resolution than _this_." She made a circling motion with a finger, then returned to her healing. "You did fine."

"Fine's not good enough, Weiss! Not anymore. I thought I told you to stop treating me like a-" Ruby stopped herself, realizing she was taking her anger out on Weiss when she was only being helpful. "I'm the Avatar. I should be able to do better. _I am able_. So the only excuse I have for losing today is that I was a weak idiot and… and a coward."

Weiss stared at where she was touching Ruby for a moment, pursing her lips with utmost displeasure. She lifted a hand carefully and watched the water, as if to make sure her healing wouldn't fail, then reached for Ruby's face and cupped her cheek lightly.

"I don't know exactly what you think you had to do or be today, Ruby, but I can tell you for a fact that I didn't stay by your side all this time because you're some infallible warrior," Weiss said. "We didn't win today. But we're all here. We're going to fix things. _Together_. Hasn't that always been the plan?"

"I… I guess…" Ruby mumbled, laying a hand over Weiss'. "Together."

"Exactly." Weiss took her hand back and returned it to Ruby's leg. "Now, if you'll stop moping and let me do my job."

Ruby giggled. A splashing sound came their way, and she turned her head to look at her father, who was crossing the stream to rejoin their side.

"Alright, took care of some bad eggs. The rest will be smart enough not to come close again, at least for a while," Taiyang said. "Is the healing going okay? Maybe we should get moving again and resume when we find shelter. I don't like us being out in the open like-"

Suddenly, a bang deafened his voice, and Ruby's vision was cut by a curtain of white and blue. She blinked and blinked and blinked, desperate to see clearly again – and when her vision returned, her father was sprawled out on the stream, smoke rising from a hole in his shirt.

"Nobody move."

Ruby looked back, her blood running cold when she saw Cinder pointing at her with two sparking fingers. Yang was frozen mid-sprint, red eyes staring murderously at Cinder. Jaune, Pyrrha and Blake stood with weapons drawn.

"That was a warning shot. He'll be okay. There will be no complications," Cinder said. "The same can't be said about any of you if you try something. So listen, and _pay attention_."

"You bitch." Yang curled her fists. "I'm going to-"

"You're going to shut up and do nothing," Cinder interrupted. "The princess comes with me."

Ruby reeled with confusion, until it dawned on her – Cinder wasn't pointing at her.

Weiss stood up slowly, raising her hands above her head. "Just… Just keep your aim on me," she said shakily. "I'll do as you say."

Ruby started to stand. "Weiss, don't-"

"Listen to her, Ruby. She's the voice of reason, remember? Your ever-dependable guide…" Cinder said, a cruel smile marking her face. "Too bad for her."

A powerful gust blew through the area, and a shadow descended from the sky above them. The Nevermore landed a second later, as big as a house, just behind Cinder. It extended his neck past her shoulder, and she pet its head with her free hand – but her eyes were still dangerously sharp as she stared at Weiss.

"This is our ride, princess," Cinder said. "Hop on. He doesn't bite."

Weiss took a hesitant step forward, then stopped. "If I go with you," she said, looking at the others nervously. "You promise not to hurt them?"

"That's the plan," Cinder said. "Move along. My patience is finite."

Drawing a sharp breath, Weiss walked towards Cinder. Ruby watched with tears in her eyes, the only thing keeping her in place being the ominous sight of Cinder's lightning, and the acrid smell that came from her father behind her.

Finally, Weiss reached Cinder's side. She looked at the Nevermore's side in disgust for a moment, then took a step back, as if trying to figure out how to make her way up to its back – then suddenly turned, one hand flying towards Cinder's neck with a trail of freezing water arcing behind it.

Cinder caught her elbow before the blow landed and twisted her around, then pressed her fingers to the back of her neck, and Weiss slumped in her arms. Barely a second later, she dropped the princess entirely and turned around, slapping Pyrrha's shield away with the back of her hand, and turned with a new surge of electricity racing down her arm to her fingers.

" _No_!" Ruby screamed, but it was too late. The lightning bolt struck Pyrrha in the shoulder, sending her spinning away until she collapsed on the ground, screaming in pain.

"You're lucky I like you, Nikos," Cinder said. "Anyone else want to take a swing? You'll only be making yourselves more miserable, I assure you."

"Try me!" Yang shouted, and the air ignited with a fire that came bursting from her hands.

Cinder stumbled back, her Nevermore taking flight to hover away from the fire. Her face twisted with anger and surprise as she strained herself to part the flames around her.

"Still hurting from the General's spanking?!" Yang shouted. "Let me finish the job!"

Yang jumped towards Cinder, bringing a blazing fist towards her face, but Cinder propelled herself away. While she regained her feet, Yang hit her with a volley of fireballs which she could barely keep up with.

Just as it looked as if the barrage would finally break through Cinder's defense, she spread her arms to the sides and yelled with an unfathomable anger – and a wave of blue fire spiraled around her, overwhelming Yang's flames and bringing an abrupt end to her attack.

They stared at each other, and Ruby couldn't tell which one looked more surprised about what had just happened. But Cinder recovered first, joining two fingers and pointing it at her.

"Move, and your sister goes," Cinder said.

Yang looked from her to Ruby, fear striking at her heart, but her eyes remained burning with fury. Seeing that, a burst of courage filled Ruby, and she stood up, raising her staff before her.

"She won't hit me, Yang! My leg might be broken, but I'm still an airbender!" Ruby shouted. "And don't even try to use her against me, Cinder! You hurt my sister, and I'll beat you up myself – you won't even see me coming!"

Yang grinned, reigniting her fists. "That's right! So who's it going to be, you second-rate snake?! Who do you think will hurt less?!"

Cinder took a step back, lowering her hand just an inch – then raised it again, aiming away from Yang – past the fallen Pyrrha – past Jaune-

" _BLAKE_!"

Yang jumped in the way, putting herself between Blake and Cinder's lightning just before it struck, and thrust out her hand.

The lightning met her fingers, and she reeled back as the energy was absorbed into her arm, spiking her hair and adding a blueish shade to her red eyes. Then she raised her other arm, willing the electricity to travel through one shoulder, through her heart, to the other shoulder, then down her right arm to the tip of her fingers-

A shrill scream reached the skies, just before she lost consciousness and hit the ground, her right arm reduced to a blackened, sickening-

" _Yang_!" Ruby dropped her staff and jumped towards Yang, but a fireball struck her before she made it there and she fell, quickly rolling to a stop. As she made to stand up, another fiery projectile struck her, and she fell back down, and this time she couldn't find the strength to rise.

"I warned you," Cinder said. The Nevermore landed beside her, and she picked up Weiss and all but tossed her to its back. "You had to make it harder on yourselves, didn't you?"

Cinder walked over to Yang and looked down at her, seemingly unaffected by the sight of her arm. Her eyes rose to inspect Blake, who was kneeling on the grass, too shocked to move.

"You leave yourselves so vulnerable," Cinder mused. "Hopefully you'll realize I was very kind to you, actually. Moderation is not my strong suit."

Ruby looked up, and right at that moment, saw Cinder hoisting Yang over her shoulder and carrying her over to the Nevermore.

"Don't mind me." Cinder tossed Yang up to join Weiss and looked back at Ruby. "I'm just driving the point home."

She stared at Ruby for a moment, as if waiting for something… Then smiled arrogantly and jumped onto the Nevermore.

As the Grimm took flight, Ruby found herself standing again, her every sense exploding with sensation. Her eyes shone silver and she shot up in a miniature tornado, her vision clearer than it had ever been, a hundred voices in her head joining to form the best course of action to make Cinder pay for what she had done…

She passed the Nevermore and spun around, arms raised. Her eyes met with Cinder's.

An eternity passed.

She did nothing.

Cinder threw out a fireball, and Ruby was shot off the sky, struggling to correct her descent as the ground grew closer and closer, flailing her arms with wild airbending, wondering where the voices had gone all of a sudden-

And she hit the ground.

* * *

"Fix her."

Weiss hissed, her knees stinging with pain as they made contact with the grass. She made to stand and strike Cinder, but a crackling hand and a look from the Nevermore over the firebender's shoulder stopped her.

"I can't…" Weiss looked down at Yang, fighting back her nausea. "I can't _fix_ her. The damage is too severe."

"So you can tell just by looking at it?" Cinder asked, pressing her fingers to the back of Weiss' neck. "Just do your best. Stabilize her. Neither of us wants her to die before we reach the Fire Nation."

She dropped a canteen on the ground, and Weiss carefully picked up and uncorked it. It was preciously little water – not nearly enough to mount an offensive, especially with Cinder on her throat like that. It wasn't enough for any amount of healing, either.

Weiss took a sharp breath. Yang would understand. She would certainly approve, too.

Swaying softly, Weiss made so Cinder's fingers poked her neck again, and visualized where and how the firebender must be standing. It was a far shot, but…

She drew the water out of the canteen and made a quick gesture with a finger, and the liquid shot past her shoulder. Cinder screamed in pain, and a moment later, Weiss was kicked to the ground.

"How dare you!" Cinder yelled, covering her left eye, blood escaping between her fingers. "Do you want to die?!"

"No." Weiss smiled. "I just had a promise to keep."

Cinder roared and swung with a hand, and Weiss' world went black.

* * *

Ruby sat up, gasping for air.

Where was she?

Why wasn't she falling anymore?

Weiss – Yang – where were they, where was Dad, where was-

"Ruby! Ruby." Jaune appeared above her, pushing her back down to the ground. "It's okay. You're alright! Just don't freak out, your leg's still messed up and-"

"Where's everyone?" Ruby pushed his hand away and sat up, looking around. "Where are we?!"

"We found a cave to hide out, me and Blake… Before she left, I mean." He shook his head. "Pyrrha's okay. She's resting right now. Your dad too."

"And… and…?"

Jaune looked away. "I'm sorry."

Ruby covered her face with her hands, and she couldn't fight back her tears anymore.

Vale. Cinder. Weiss and Yang.

How could she have let this happen?

**END OF BOOK TWO**


	41. Moving Forward

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Three: Fire**

**Chapter One: Moving Forward**

* * *

"Get in formation!"

General Vernal shouted, pacing imperiously in front of the High Seat of Atlas. Her eyes burned with a rage as intense as the fire that snaked around her hands and wrists.

Her voice echoed across the wide room and roused the men and women under her command. The ones that were left, that is. Because the Fire Lord had ordered a step-by-step retreat to the east coast of the kingdom two weeks before, their numbers had already been dwindling by the day. The Earth Army's attack had only exacerbated the issue.

How many were left now? Thirty? Half of that? It didn't matter. As long as one firebender remained, those animals would experience hell on Remnant.

"Stand your ground! We'll let them come to us and end them in the heart of their own city!" the general shouted. "If a fiery death is what they want, let's give it to them! For the motherland! For the Fire Lord!"

The soldiers bellowed, casting aside the thought of how outnumbered they were as they were swept up in their collective pride. The room shook, causing speckles of rock to rain down from the ceiling, but it was not due to their voices. No, that was an indication that their enemies were approaching.

And so they did. The large wooden double doors to the throne room opened from the outside, so forcefully they almost went flying out of their hinges. A mass of green-clad faunus occupied the hallway, shaking steel blades above their heads and ripping chunks of rock from the walls around them.

Vernal took a step forward, raising a hand above her head before bringing it down ruthlessly to point at the Earth soldiers. "Light up their furs!"

What followed that order could hardly be comprehended, even by someone who had seen and lived war for so long, like Vernal herself. Fire everywhere she looked, only broken by flashes of white that shortly turned red; screams that shouldn't, _couldn't_ belong to human or faunus throats; an unending shaking, as if the whole world was about to split in half.

And then it ended. When Vernal was back to herself, she saw that all her soldiers had been brought down by stone or sword. Only she remained to continue the fight.

Doubt came probing at her mind. Was this the fate the world had cast her? To die meaninglessly away from home?

No. She had her orders. Moreover, she had her honor. She would disappoint neither her Nation nor her Lord.

"So this is the paltry force the great Fire Lord left to resist the might of the Earth Kingdom?" The Earth King emerged from amidst the faunus, his face covered by his half-mask, as always, with sword resting on his shoulder. "I would be offended, if I didn't already know she was such a fool… And a coward."

"You… you cur! Bite back those words!" Vernal snarled. "I'll reduce you to ash, right where you stand!"

"You are free to try, but the fight is over. The White Fang has reclaimed Atlas from your vile hands. Next, we'll remove all the rest of you firebenders from our land!" Adam smirked. "Face it, _General_. Your Fire Lord bit on more than she could chew, and now she's abandoned you to preserve her own pride. But what else could you expect from the biggest of all ash-lovers?"

"What would you know of Raven Branwen, mutt? You aren't worthy of even kissing her boots. Ican barely stand to look at you myself." Vernal raised her chin to him. "Leave and come back with your true King. He's an opponent closer to my level."

Adam's face twisted with anger. He lowered his sword and began walking towards her, the ground trembling beneath his feet. Vernal watched him with contempt, a flame growing between her hands.

"Is that mask for hiding your scars?" Vernal said. "I hope not. I'll be much happier to decorate a fresh face."

Adam spun his sword as he climbed the steps towards the throne. "Scars will be the last of your concerns when I'm done with you."

Like twin declarations of hate, their voices rose; fire and earth came alive; and the king and the general clashed.

* * *

Ruby's eyes snapped open.

She didn't know why, but she was terrified. Something was coursing through her body, an otherworldly energy that was somehow familiar, yet at the same foreign to her. She had a feeling it should have been calming, but it was having the very opposite effect… As if it had been twisted into something dark.

She lay unmoving inside her bundled-up cloak, her eyes fixed on the rocky ceiling above her. A soft breeze came from the opening of the cave, carrying with it a faint salty scent. It was cold, but that was to be expected of an Earth Kingdom winter night.

As the strange energy faded, the beating of Ruby's heart settled into a nicer pace, and she found herself able to move again. She shifted in her makeshift cocoon, looking around for her companions.

Pyrrha was laying on her side not far away from her, though unlike Ruby, she had actual blankets covering most of her body. She'd left her shield at hand's reach, as she always did when they settled for the night. Despite the rough sleeping arrangements, she seemed to be having a pleasant dream. Perhaps the ground just didn't bother her, what with her being a master earthbender.

Her father was asleep sat against a wall, facing Ruby's general direction. He had a terrible habit of keeping watch over her and the others even when it wasn't his turn. Well, she supposed it wasn't all that terrible – it was rather sweet of him, actually – but Ruby wished he would take better care of himself at times.

Jaune was the only one still awake, as it was his turn to take watch, though from the way his head was lolling to the side, Ruby guessed he was only half-awake. Not a big deal. It had been weeks since they'd seen a patrol from either the Fire Nation or the Earth Kingdom, and with the reignited fighting between those two, the Grimm had more tempting targets than a small group like Ruby's.

For a moment, Ruby felt at peace, knowing that her friends were safe… until reality struck, as it always did, cruelly. There were absences in the group… In her family. Critical absences.

After so long, perhaps Ruby should have been able to move on somewhat, found it easier to accept the loss of Weiss and Yang. But she'd only changed the ways she processed it. She had no more room in her heart for despair and fear. Now, she had something else. Something uglier.

Restless, Ruby sank her fingers on her cloak and rolled to her side, glaring at the cave rocks as if they were everything that was wrong in the world. Stupid rocks. Stupid caves. Who had given _them_ permission to exist?

Her movement must have caused more noise than she'd intended, as she heard Jaune shake himself awake and walk over, crouching beside her. "Ruby, you awake?" he said, and waited a moment before adding, "Bad dreams?"

"Mmm," Ruby mumbled noncommittally. "Nothing big."

"You sure? Can I get you anything, maybe some cool water…?" he asked.

"'M fine."

"Okay… Just try to get some sleep. We need to get up early, remember? We don't wanna keep Winter waiting…" He shuddered. "No, we don't…"

Ruby nodded. Jaune lingered at her side, his eyes scanning the space around them. He sighed quietly, then put on a brave face and walked back to the entrance, where he sat down, sword on his lap.

Ruby curled up and touched her chin to her chest in an attempt to cover her head with her cloak. With the sight of her too-empty surroundings filtered out, she forced her eyes to close.

Maybe tonight she would get some actual sleep.

* * *

"We're definitely getting close now," Jaune said, his lips curling into a smile of relief. "You guys can smell it too, right? Jeez, I used to hate the smell of the ocean. Guess it was because it was in my nose all the time."

"Don't relax just yet, keep your eyes open," Taiyang advised. "We should be coming upon a cliff before we reach the shore proper. Trust me, you don't wanna go tumbling down from that height."

Jaune looked at him curiously. "What, you have experience in that area?"

"No?" Taiyang frowned. "Did you have to stick your hand in a fireplace before you learned not to get burned?"

The silence he was met with was an answer in of itself.

"…Yeah, me too, now that I think about it."

Walking a bit ahead of them, Pyrrha let out a low chuckle. Being the most adept tracker in the group, it had become the norm for her to take the lead while they were on the move. She wouldn't be falling off a cliff anytime soon. There was also the eventuality of them being confronted by enemies they couldn't elude. For that she had her shield, an always invaluable tool on the frontlines.

Ruby tried to find some fun in her father and her best friend's banter too, but the most she could muster was a small smile. She was excited to see Winter again after so long, as she was fond of her first proper waterbending teacher. But that excitement was diminished by the circumstances of their reunion, and…

Well, it was hard enough just to prepare for that conversation. Perhaps it would be better for her to just not to think about it.

"I think we're coming up on that cliff," Pyrrha said, slowing down slightly to take firmer steps, her boots leaving imprints on the dirt soil. "Yes, I can feel the ocean. It shouldn't take more than five minutes for us to get there – that is, once we figure out how we're getting down. And…"

Pyrrha's voice petered out, and she stopped completely to stomp harder. Her eyes widened a bit, and she turned to look at Ruby.

"Ruby, how many warriors did Winter say were in her company?"

"I… I don't remember exactly," Ruby said. "Weiss told me it was supposed to be two dozen ships?"

"Yes, but then those plans obviously changed," Taiyang said helpfully. "Winter said in her letter she would be bringing only two ships. So, around fifteen people." He crossed his arms worriedly. "Why, Pyrrha? What's wrong?"

"Well… What I'm sensing is definitely _not_ fifteen people," Pyrrha said. "More like fifty." She tapped lightly with her foot. "Or sixty, I can't be sure."

"That can't be good," Jaune said, lowering his hand to the hilt of his sword. "Guys, I think we should…"

Before he even finished his sentence, Ruby was already sprinting past Pyrrha, leaving a trail of dust behind her.

"What she said!" Jaune yelled, running after her along with Pyrrha and Taiyang.

The cliff appeared in front of Ruby in a matter of seconds, and she didn't hesitate for an instant before jumping off it, using her staff to stabilize her flight. Only when she was up in the air did she take a moment to look down and ascertain the land below.

It was the beach indeed, and the exact spot they had been invited to, judging from the pair of Water Tribe ships stationed there. Along the shoreline stood a company of blue-clad warriors, in front of them a familiar white-haired woman. Despite being so far above her, Ruby was still struck by Winter's commanding presence. Some things never changed.

Facing them was a group of soldiers in green, and their numbers easily dwarfed the tribesmen. Worst of all, they had their weapons drawn already, and Ruby heard shouts. Too many shouts. And not the friendly kind, either.

Not bothering to get a deeper read of the situation, Ruby propelled herself downward and landed between the two forces, though she made sure to be closer to Winter. Her left leg stung a bit at the impact. She would probably be regretting that maneuver in a few hours, but for now she just ignored the pain and put on a harsh expression.

"Alright, what's going on over here?" Ruby asked, spinning her staff over her head before bringing it level to her right.

"Ruby!" Winter exclaimed. "I mean, Avatar. Good to see you here at last, and at such an opportune occasion." She raised her chin at the hostile earthbenders. "I was just about to banish these ruffians back to whatever hole they climbed out of."

"Shut your mouth, lady! This is Earth Kingdom territory, and you're infringing on it!" one of the soldiers yelled. "Get off, now! Last warning!"

Ruby sighed internally. Great. Another argument she was caught in the middle of. That always went well.

"Let's all cool our heads for a moment, okay? I'm sure we can reach a better solution than bashing our heads against each other," Ruby said. "What's your name?"

"Yuma," the earth soldier replied, puffing his chest, and two bat-like wings sprang out of the back of his uniform. "Lieutenant Yuma of the Earth Kingdom Army, appointed by King Taurus himself. And by the King's word, all foreigners are forbidden to set foot on his land." He glared at Winter. "He made sure his decree reached _all_ places of Remnant."

"Forgive me if I don't recognize the word of a mani-" Winter cut herself short, taking a moment to recompose herself before speaking again. "Yes. Your King's wishes are well understood. And they will be met… in time. But I have important business here, and I will not be pressured to leave before it has been done."

"The Earth Kingdom doesn't care about your business," Yuma said. "You will leave, or face the penalty for breaking the King's law. That is, capture and judgment. And your sentence will be fit for unfeeling ice brutes like you and your men."

As Winter seethed in rage, Ruby spied in the corner of her vision, her friends coming down the cliff to join the tense scene. Pyrrha was sliding down the rocky wall with Jaune holding onto her for dear life, while her father was skillfully lowering himself to the sand with jets of flames on his hands and feet.

"Look," Ruby said, lifting her free hand amicably. "This is a very complicated situation, okay? But it doesn't have to be." She pointed at Yuma. "You have to do as your… King tells you. That's fine. But you don't have to be so ruthless about it. Winter is a good person. If you just leave her alone until she's done with her job, she won't cause you any problems. Okay?"

"A good person? Would a good person not move a muscle to help me and my people while we suffered the Fire Nation's wrath for fifteen years?" Yuma scoffed. "No, she'll be afforded the same generosity she gave us! _None_."

"Things are not so simple. My Tribe has its own problems to deal with," Winter said. "Moreover, if your King wasn't such a colossal imbecile, he wouldn't have spat on the support the Water Tribe is offering now."

Yuma's wings unfurled further. "Watch your tongue!"

Winter muttered something under her breath, and though Ruby couldn't quite understand it, she was sure it was sufficiently nasty coming from a woman of her stature.

"Okay, so clearly we have some bad blood here," Ruby said, disheartened. "But we can fix this. Let's just, you know, turn around… Walk back to our respective homes… Have a laugh with our loved ones… And everything will be fine! Simple! No bashing heads!"

"And who are you to speak?!" Yuma said, turning on Ruby, and the sight of his amazing stature, in addition to his wings, made her quake where she stood. "You think you have any authority here? You're not allowed in Earth Kingdom soil either!"

"But I'm the Avatar," Ruby said. "How can I be banished from here? I can't help you like that."

"Help? Pah! We don't need any help from a worthless Avatar like you!" Yuma spat at the sand between his feet. "You couldn't even help your friends, let alone a whole people!"

Silence reigned. Ruby's fingers tightened around her staff, knuckles turning white. Winter leaned forward, casting a worried glance at her, while Taiyang landed at her side, lips parted to say something-

"We're done here." Ruby stepped forward and swung her staff sideways with both hands, producing a rush of air so intense it could rival that of the largest tornadoes in History.

The Earth soldiers went flying off their feet, smacking into each other in mid-air. Weapons went spinning away, becoming lost in the spiraling sand that rose off the beach. Then another wind, somehow even harsher than the first, slammed the soldiers back onto the ground, leaving some dizzy, others outright unconscious.

"You wanna be the tough guys, huh?! You wanna bother Winter some more?!" Ruby shouted. "Get up and fight me, then!"

She brought her staff up for another blow, but someone grabbed it above her head and yanked it out of her hands. Ruby turned to face them, furious like she'd never been before, but her scream died in her throat when she saw her father staring back at her, a concerned look in his eyes.

"Ruby, that's enough," he said softly. "I think they've learned their lesson… Whatever that was."

Ruby lowered her head, shame washing over her. Some of the soldiers were starting to get up and flee, carrying their unconscious compatriots off with them. There were some… nasty injuries on some of them.

Had she really done that? Ruby the airbender? It couldn't be…

"Thank you, Ruby," Winter said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Your assistance was… greatly appreciated."

Ruby couldn't bring herself to look her teacher in the eyes. She had dishonored her with that display.

"Indeed, it was greatly appreciated. I was beginning to fear I would have to intervene on the Commander's behalf," a new voice said, coming from one of the ships behind them.

Ruby slowly turned to look, barely believing her ears. It couldn't be…

"You saved me quite a bit of trouble," Glynda Goodwitch, true Queen of the Earth Kingdom, said, a small smile on her lips. "It's nice to see you again, Avatar Ruby."

* * *

Minutes later, the group was gathered inside Winter's ship, in one of the strategy rooms where they could have a discussion in private. It was Ruby, Jaune, Pyrrha and Taiyang, as well as Winter and Queen Glynda, and they all had a lot to share with each other.

"I don't get it," Jaune said, rubbing his temples fervently. It hadn't hit midday yet, and his head was already spiraling with new information. "I mean, Hazel said you had surrendered and escaped Vale without a fight, but… Well…"

He shifted uncomfortably in his chair, hardly willing to be the one to say what he had in mind, even if everyone had the same thoughts as him. Luckily, Pyrrha wasn't so reserved, and her respect for her Queen made her speak truthfully to her, as Glynda had previously requested.

"We weren't sure we could believe him. Granted, he didn't tell us any lies, at least as far as we know, but even so… After a month without any news from you…" Pyrrha said. "We started to fear he might have lied about you."

"Hmm. Yes, Hazel is a paragon of honesty among traitors, that I must agree with," Glynda said. "I'm sorry to have caused such worry. It is entirely my own fault that you haven't seen or heard of me until now. I need to stay hidden, even from my closest allies… until the time is right, that is."

"You're keeping a low profile until it's safe for you to contact your network again and mount a counterattack," Taiyang said. "Always a sharp mind with you, Glynda."

Glynda shook her head lightly. "Something like that."

Ruby looked at the Queen curiously, a question at the tip of her tongue, but as eager as she was to ask it, she was unsure that it wouldn't be inappropriate… or anything short of hurtful.

"You're wondering why I surrendered so easily, aren't you, Ruby?" Glynda said.

Ruby jumped, startled that Glynda had seen through her like that. Embarrassed, she simply nodded her head in response and waited to see if Glynda would indulge her.

"Well, it's… a delicate topic. I must admit it pains me to discuss it," Glynda said, interlacing her fingers in front of her. For the first time since they'd met, Ruby thought she saw shame on the banished queen's face. "It's true that I could have fought off the White Fang. As for Hazel himself, I am not so sure, but with you and your friends' help, it could have been done."

"Yet you didn't fight," Taiyang said quietly, a knowing expression on his face. "You chose not to."

"Yes. It would have been painful to fight my own people, even if they were led by a madman like Adam Taurus," Glynda said. "More importantly, as I sat on my throne all by myself that day, and saw a hundred and more passionate men and women come to my steps to protest my position, I realized that, perhaps… I didn't deserve to be sitting there, after all."

For a moment, Ruby could only stare, her mouth half-open. Then she shook and straightened in her chair, hands tapping anxiously on the table between them. "But- but you said it yourself, it was Adam leading them, he's crazy, and Hazel too, he betrayed you just because he's got a stick up his butt about-"

"Ruby, please. Language," Winter requested. "And things are not so simple. If you'll allow Glynda to explain herself further, you might come to see things from her perspective."

Ruby settled down, though not without a disgruntled huff. Winter shook her head at her, while Taiyang hid a smile behind his hands.

"You know that Taurus has managed to drive back the Fire Nation at a startling rate since he took over, don't you?" Glynda said. "That's not due to any tactical genius or hidden talent of his, of course. No, it's because he has captured the heart of the people of the Earth Kingdom. He has produced an army ten times bigger than mine at its prime, and his soldiers believe in him. That is critical. I paled in comparison."

"But… The people loved you," Ruby said. "You were a great queen, and you did great things…"

"A great ruler doesn't do great things, Ruby," Glynda said. "A great ruler simply is."

Ruby blinked at her, helplessly confused. She turned to look at her father, but he just shrugged. Pyrrha didn't have any commentary to assist her either, and Jaune looked just as, if not more confused than Ruby.

"The point is, if I want to be Queen once again, I will have to work for it," Glynda said. "I must reconnect with my people. Rediscover the heart of them. Only then, will I be worthy of kicking Adam Taurus's butt, the cretin."

If Ruby had been drinking something, she would have spat it all out.

Glynda smiled contently. "Ah, but I must say, it is good to not be shackled by the norms of queenship."

"Moving on… Glynda has already found something to help her in her, _ahem_ , journey of redemption," Winter said, nodding politely at Glynda. "Taurus has gained the loyalty of many with the spread of his nationalist ideals."

"Hazel's ideals, really," Glynda interjected, looking at her fingernails in contempt.

"Still, that has earned him just as much opposition. Most eartherners hate the Fire Nation, but opinions on the Water Tribe are split… And the Air Nomads are remembered fondly even today," Winter said. "It might sound strange, but an alliance with outside powers might be just what Glynda needs to rally the Earth Kingdom around her and bring it back to what it was before."

"You make it sound like that is just some political stunt," Glynda said, a hint of bitterness in her voice. "The people of the Earth Kingdom are proud and strong, but we are not alone in the world. It's for the good of everyone that the four nations form bonds of union again. And hopefully this time, they won't be so easily broken." She nodded. "That, I fully believe in."

"So, an alliance between the four nations." Taiyang smiled wryly, his gaze going from Glynda to Winter. "Why does that sound like something I've heard before?"

Ruby looked at her father curiously. She hadn't found it strange that he knew Glynda already, not for a second, as they both were royalty in one way or another. But Winter? Well, she was royalty too, but much younger than him… For them to have met before the war started, Winter had to have been a child.

Also, why did Jaune look so excited all of a sudden?

"Indeed, it sounds familiar," Winter said, though she sounded oddly disinterested in the cryptic topic. "Moving on. That alliance is why myself and Glynda have united here in my ship. Naturally, she knew that I would be coming here before she was usurped, so she knew where to go."

"I am ever so thankful for your hospitality and friendship, Princess Winter." Glynda bowed her head respectfully.

"If I can't call you Queen, then you can't call me Princess," Winter said, and Glynda acquiesced with a slight shrug. "We've been planning the expansion of the alliance. The majority of our forces will come from the Earth Kingdom, of course."

"James' rank has been stripped by Taurus, but he's not given up the fight. He's hiding away from the bulk of the fighting, with the soldiers that still are loyal to him – which, I am happy to say, happen to be most of the old army," Glynda said. "My first objective will to be find him and welcome him into the fold."

"Uhm, who the heck is James again?" Jaune blurted out.

"James Ironwood, Jaune. _General_ James Ironwood," Pyrrha informed gently.

"Ah, right. I'm terrible with names."

"I know a bunch of people back home that would gladly join such an alliance. They have no love for my dear ex-wife," Taiyang said. "Sadly, I don't think I can reach them right now. My hands are tied."

"I'm afraid I'm in a similar position," Winter said. "Father had finally relented to my pleas and permitted me to mobilize the navy and support the Earth Kingdom in the war, but that was before Taurus took over and…" Her voice became smaller. "…well, he isn't so willing to part with any of his warriors anymore."

She met eyes with Ruby for but an instant, before both looked away hurriedly. Suddenly, no one was speaking a word anymore, only the faint humming of the ship's motor and the waves crashing against it saving them from complete silence.

"Well, uhm…" Pyrrha carefully raised her voice. "This multi-nation alliance you speak of, Your Majesty…"

"Glynda will suffice, Miss Nikos."

"Glynda. This alliance… it would seem like we would fit right in, wouldn't we?" Pyrrha looked at her traveling companions. "We've got perfect representation, actually. One person from each nation. I suppose Ruby adds some imbalance, since technically she is from all nations…" She dismissed that line of thought with a wave of her hand. "Anyway. Are you expecting us to join? It would make a lot of sense."

"I don't _expect_ you to do anything. The actions each of you take are up to you and you alone," Glynda said. "Although, yes, I would be elated if you joined our efforts. We're going to need all the help we can get, and someone like Ruby specifically would be an invaluable addition to the ranks."

Pyrrha looked at Ruby, an unspoken question in her eyes. An immediate refusal was Ruby's first instinct, as she had another goal in the front of her mind already, but she stopped herself to think more clearly.

"I… I don't know," Ruby said. "Could we take some time to think? Just, uhm, a couple of days, maybe."

"There is no rush, Ruby," Winter said. "You and your friends can take however long you want to reach a decision."

She sounded patient, and by all rights she looked it too. But Ruby could detect something else in Winter, a sense of urgency, a plea for her to take action fast.

This decision would not be an easy one, Ruby could already tell.

* * *

The group took the day to rest. Travelling from Vale to the east coast of the Kingdom had taken a toll on them, physically and mentally. To finally have beds to sleep on, even if they were borrowed and not exactly comfortable, was like a gift from the heavens.

Unfortunately, this gift proved to have a bad side to it, at least as far as Ruby was concerned. The tribulations of travel didn't allow one to linger on past hurts, especially when it came to the heart. But peace, even temporary… That was when it all came back to the surface, like all the bad things had happened just the day before.

So while everyone rested, Ruby lay motionless in her given bed, stuck inside her own head. She kept replaying events in her head – decisions she could have made differently – moments when she could have been better – opportunities she had passed up and lost forever…

It was maddening. She knew that soon, she would break, and she almost wished it would happen already. At least then the aching would ease a bit.

Ruby didn't have a window in her guestroom, so she didn't see when the sun went down, but when doors started to be locked and snored echoes on the hallway outside, she knew they were well into the night. She got up then, and headed out to the deck. She desperately needed fresh air, but hadn't wanted to show her face to anyone. With everyone asleep, she didn't have to worry about that anymore.

Except there _was_ someone on the deck, sitting on a chair near the prow. The first thing Ruby could identify in the darkness was a mane of white hair. Her heart skipped a beat, mind racing back weeks, months, to a time spent on another ship, nights just like this where she went out to find her center, and Weiss was always there to-

But that wasn't Weiss. Of course not. Ruby had never seen Winter with her hair down like that. That way, it was very much a mirror image of her younger sister's.

Ruby thought about turning back around, but her feet were moving of their own accord, taking her straight to Winter. Her mouth felt dry, her throat parched, the air in her lungs – was there any air in her lungs? – was slipping away…

"I'm sorry."

Winter jumped and turned in her chair, ready to admonish Ruby for scaring her like that – only to see the look in her face, and then her own expression became one of immense sadness and pity. "Ruby, you don't have to-"

"I'm sorry!" Ruby fell onto Winter's lap and buried her face on the older woman's shoulder. " _I'm sorry!_ "

Not having an inkling of a clue as to what to do, Winter could only sit still and accept it as Ruby cried her heart out. She tried once or twice to pat the girl in the back for comfort, but lowered her hands quickly when she thought about the futility of the act. How could a meaningless touch of a palm ever heal a wound like that?

In her crying, Ruby seemed to recite a whole novel's worth of apologies, though Winter could hardly make out a word of the jumbled mess of sounds. The meaning could be deciphered easily enough, however wrong it was.

After what felt like an hour, Ruby ceased crying and withdrew her head from Winter's shoulder, only to look her straight in the eyes again to mutter one last, "I'm sorry."

Ruby started backing off, but Winter grabbed her arms and pulled her into a hug. Yes, a gesture like that couldn't truly heal anything… but that didn't mean it was worthless.

"Alright, now," Winter said, letting Ruby go. "That was… long enough, I believe."

Ruby mumbled under her breath as she stood up again, clasping her hands nervously close to her chest. "I'm sorry about… about that. M-man, that was embarrassing. I don't know what came over me. A-and you're my teacher and all…"

"Well, better your teacher than, say, the Earth Queen, right?" Winter gave her a kind smile, a rare thing from her. "It's okay, Ruby. As far as awkward experiences with you go, this was relatively pleasant."

"Huh? What other experiences – oh right." Ruby now remembered that one time she had started explaining the birds and the bees to Winter. She would have done the whole bit if Winter hadn't stopped her.

Yeah, that had been _pretty awkward_.

"Teacher Winter, I know you must be sick of hearing it at this point, but," Ruby said. "I'm sorry I didn't save Weiss. I tried, and I could have saved her… I really could have. But I didn't." She bowed her head. "I shamed you, and Weiss, and Pyrrha… I shamed you all."

_Even Cinder_ , she thought morosely, only to grow furious with herself an instant later. _Get her out of your freaking head already!_

"You're too hard on yourself, Ruby," Winter said. "If anyone has the right to be angry with you, that's me. But I am not. So, please, give yourself a little compassion. Would Weiss want you to be punishing yourself like this?"

"I don't know… She could be very harsh at times," Ruby muttered.

"We both know that's not the right answer."

Weiss would never blame Ruby for her being captured. Ruby knew that already, of course, but while that was a small relief, it wasn't really what she was worried about. But Winter had a point, nonetheless. Ruby needed to get herself together, for Weiss' sake – and Yang's.

"Winter, I wanna go rescue them. Weiss and Yang," Ruby said, declaring out loud what she'd been mulling over for weeks. "They must be being held together, somewhere in the Fire Nation. I know it's risky, but-"

"It _is_ risky," Winter agreed readily. "You, infiltrating the Fire Nation? Ruby, that isn't just risky, it's… Well, it's exactly the kind of plan you'd come up with, which is _not a good thing_."

"Okay…" Ruby smiled wide. "Wanna join?"

Winter rolled her eyes and sighed deeply. "I would be lying if I said I hadn't considered going myself," she said. "But I can't. For the aforementioned reason of it being beyond risky, and I have duties to see to here. The alliance must happen, Ruby."

Ruby could see the pain in Winter's eyes. The world was more important than her sister. Ruby did not envy her position. Although, now that she thought about it, she perhaps faced an even harder dilemma…

She was the Avatar. If she… well, _died_ , trying to rescue her sister and Weiss, then who would do her job of saving the world? Remnant couldn't wait another fifteen years for the next emotionally unstable teenager to come along and start flinging the four elements around.

Also, the Air Nomads.

Damn, that painful little matter would never lose its edge, would it?

"So…" Coyly joining her hands behind her back, Ruby looked at Winter. "Do you want _me_ to go?"

At once, Winter got up, nearly knocking her chair over in her fervor. Ruby backed up, scared by the sudden anger that appeared on Winter's face.

"Don't _ever_ ask me that again," Winter hissed.

Ruby started to apologize, but it fell on deaf ears as Winter marched away, disappearing inside the ship. Left alone on the deck, Ruby kicked the floor in frustration.

"And I thought we were having a moment," she muttered. "Stupid mouth."

* * *

Jaune twiddled his thumbs near his lap, doing his best to keep his eyes trained on the ceiling of his room and ignore the warmth pressing up against his arm. It was a difficult thing to do, what with the bed being so small. He was pretty sure it hadn't been designed for pairs.

Or, uh, couples.

"Pyrrha?" he called out meekly, half-hoping she was sleeping already.

"Yes, Jaune?" came her reply, almost immediately.

"Uhm… _Question_ ," he said awkwardly. "Is it weird that we're sleeping in the same room…?"

"What do you mean? We've slept together a bunch of times already. The whole group has. In caves, forests, even in plain fields," she said. "I don't see why it would be weird now."

Jaune cast her a sideways glance. She had to be messing with him. But Pyrrha hadn't changed her demeanor in the slightest, still staring at the ceiling with a blank look on her face.

"I just mean… Err…" Jaune swallowed dry. "'Cause we're, you know, together. So it's different. And you're just kinda laying there…?"

"Well, Jaune, it is night. Usually the time people go to sleep in their beds," Pyrrha said matter-of-factly. "What else am I supposed to do at a time like this?"

She rolled on her side to face him, eyes going wide and eyebrows rising questioningly. A string of nonsense sounds sputtered out of Jaune's mouth, his whole face going red in an instant. Finally, Pyrrha broke into a grin and she wrapped his arms around him, laughing softly.

"It's not weird, Jaune. We're together, everyone knows that," she said. "We should take every moment we have to be close to each other. Unless…" her voice wavered a bit. "Unless you're not comfortable with this? I'll leave if you want me to…"

"No. It's okay. I like having you close, Pyrrha," Jaune said hurriedly. "I guess I'm just having a tough time getting used to this kinda stuff. It's not like I've ever done it before."

"Neither have I. But I'm enjoying the learning experience."

She smiled at him and pressed herself closer to his arm. Jaune hummed under his breath, allowing himself to relax a bit and enjoy the moment.

It didn't last long, however, as Pyrrha pulled back towards her miniscule half of the bed, sadness flashing across her face. She hid it with a smile, but not fast enough that Jaune didn't notice it.

"Pyrrha, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I just…" she said quietly. "I've been thinking about the alliance Her Majesty is putting together. Do you think we should join?"

"I don't know. Probably. It sounds important, and honestly, it's the safest thing to do," Jaune said. "But Ruby wants to go to the Fire Nation and rescue Weiss and Yang. She hasn't said anything, but I can tell. And I wanna go with her. Not just to support her, but because… Well, it's Weiss. We can't just leave her there."

Pyrrha nodded. "I miss her too."

"So you agree? We should go rescue her?" Jaune asked eagerly.

"If that's Ruby's wish and yours, yes," Pyrrha said, looking away. "My own thoughts don't matter much."

Jaune faced her, startled. "What? Pyrrha, what the heck are you talking about? Of course your thoughts matter!" he said. "If you disagree, that's fine. We can have a discussion or something, to decide what to do. We're not gonna force you to do something you don't want to."

"I don't disagree, Jaune. I wanna rescue Weiss too." Pyrrha's hand went to her shoulder, where a lightning bolt had struck not so long ago. "But I shouldn't make decisions for the group. The last time I did, I… I rescued Cinder from Hazel, and then she turned on us anyway. We wouldn't be in this mess if I had just left her behind."

Jaune scowled. "Cinder's a total psycho. You couldn't have known."

"She told me to my face that I shouldn't trust her. How's that for not knowing?"

"Well, I was the one who let her help her us in the first place. You even tried to convince me otherwise, remember?" Jaune said. "So, if you think your decisions are worthless, you're gonna have to say the same thing about me."

Pyrrha sighed, her lips curling in a tired smile. She edged towards Jaune again and hugged him, laying her head against his shoulder.

"Fine. We can talk about it with Ruby tomorrow. She probably wants to hear us out already," she said. "Let's sleep, now."

"Yup. But fair warning," Jaune chuckled. "I snore."

"Yes, I know all too well…"

* * *

Ruby gathered her cloak around her and stood up on the deck of the ship. Her talk with Winter hadn't cleared her thoughts all that much, especially after how Winter had stormed off at the end, but she felt much lighter now, at least. Ruby wasn't a big fan of crying, especially in front of her teachers, but perhaps that was just what she'd been needing before she could make her decision.

But not right now. First, she'd get some proper sleep – and this time, she was fairly sure she could manage it. She took one last whiff of the salty air, then headed back inside the ship.

Unfortunately, this night didn't seem to be done with her quite yet. On the way to her room, she saw tremulant candlelight escaping from underneath a door, and as she got closer, noticed two voices conversing inside. Far from being an eavesdropper, Ruby just shrugged as she walked past… only to stop when she recognized one of the voices as her father's.

Ruby bit her lip, telling herself she should go ahead to her room, but her attention was fixed on that door now. It wouldn't be wrong of her to listen in on his conversation, right? Wasn't that what daughters did to their fathers – grossly violate their privacy then use what they illicitly heard against them later?

Yes, that sounded accurate. She couldn't be blamed for behaving according to her daughterly nature! Standing on the tip of her toes, Ruby carefully walked to the door and pressed her ear against it.

"-Lionheart. He's the only person I could conceivably reach without the whole Fire Nation hearing about it," Taiyang said. "But I'm not so sure about him. He used to be a fine ally, but ever since the war started… He hasn't _supported_ Raven, but he hasn't spoken a word against her either. He's scared to death of her, and it seems he only gets worse each passing year."

"I see," Queen Glynda replied. "We used to correspond regularly, but his letters stopped some years back. I didn't know what to make of it at the time, even worried that some ill had befallen him… But now it makes sense why he cut contact so suddenly. That's too bad." She sighed. "I don't suppose you could convince him to lend his strength to our cause nonetheless?"

"That's a tall order. But we don't have any other candidates from the Fire Nation," Taiyang said. "Well, there's Qrow, but who knows which hole Raven tossed him in."

"Loathe as I am to admit it, Qrow's support would be more than welcomed these days. But don't ever let him know I said that, Taiyang."

"Heh. Your secret's safe with me."

There was a lull in the conversation as someone stood up and paced around the room. Ruby froze as the steps got dangerously close to the door – had she been discovered somehow? – but then they walked away, and she sighed in relief.

"What about your daughter?"

"My daughter?" Taiyang's voice rose in surprise. "Do you mean…"

"I mean Yang. I believe there's no better candidate than her," Glynda said. "You must have considered rescuing her."

"Of course, I have. There's nothing I want more than to see Yang again! But I can't just rush off searching for her like that. Yang's not my only responsibility anymore…"

Ruby pulled back, trembling a bit at the shoulders. Was she being a burden to her father? If he hadn't had to take care of her all this time, would he have rescued Yang already?

She pressed her ear to the door again, praying she was wrong.

"-I've sensed she felt like that for a while, but that was the first time she showed it that way. I didn't even know she was capable of something like that."

"Well, she has gone through a lot recently. If it's any comfort, Taiyang, I think it's remarkable, the strength she's shown despite everything that's happened to her."

"Indeed…" Taiyang's voice was filled with warmth, but running underneath it was a depth of sadness. "To be honest, Glynda, I'm starting to think they don't need me. I all but abandoned Ruby when she was a baby, and Yang… Well, I've tried to protect her from the whole world, but that's never done much good. Despite all that, they've both grown into such incredible women. Maybe… maybe they're better off without me."

Ruby stepped away from the door, her vision blurred by tears. Why did she have to listen to that? Why couldn't she have just left things alone?

* * *

Sleep didn't come to her again that night.

The whole world was coming apart around her. The Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom were about to fight their most terrible battles yet, which meant that surely one of the two would be left in shambles in the end – probably even both. The Water Tribe was isolating itself once again. And the Grimm had never been a bigger threat.

Closer to home, Glynda was struggling to take her kingdom back, without great prospects. Winter was barely holding herself together. Her father was starting to doubt himself. Jaune and Pyrrha weren't doing well either, she knew it even though they tried to hide it from her.

Weiss and Yang… Ruby knew nothing about their situation. That, more than anything, terrified her.

And here she was, doing nothing. Like usual.

_Get a grip already_.

She flinched and reached for her staff beside her bed, but stopped when she realized she'd only imagined that voice. That voice which echoed inside her head, but didn't belong to any of her past lives… No, it was just another teacher of hers.

_You're the Avatar. Start acting like it._

Ruby grabbed her staff and laid it on her lap. Her face hardened with anger.

"You know what?" she whispered. "Maybe you're right."

It was time for her to start moving forward.

* * *

"I'm going to rescue Weiss and Yang. And I want you all to come with me."

There wasn't a trace of doubt in Ruby's voice, which was what gave them pause, more than what she actually said.

Jaune traced a finger along the sheath of his sword, a look of wonderment on his face as he stared at his oldest friend. Pyrrha's face took on a tiny frown, though a moment later she was nodding, as if Ruby's declaration only made sense. And finally, leaning back against the ship's railings, Taiyang broke into a smile, though there was a hint of sadness to it.

"I know this is irresponsible," Ruby said. "The Fire Nation is probably the last place on Remnant we should go. And there are so many people that need our help. The difference we could make working with Glynda and Winter… But I can't do anything while Weiss and Yang are locked away in one of the Fire Lord's prisons."

"Cinder taught me that I too often put my friends before the rest of the world, and that's a weakness. And she was probably right." Ruby shook her head. "But you know what? Good on her. If what it takes to be a good Avatar is to abandon your friends when they are suffering, then I'd rather be the worst Avatar ever."

"I don't wanna force you guys to come with me, but I will go alone if that's what it takes. Anyone with me?"

Jaune had stepped forward before she'd even posed that question.

"Well, duh," he said. "I'd go to the depths of Remnant for you, Ruby. Actually, err, I've done that once already." He shrugged. "Count me in."

Ruby smiled at him. She'd expected nothing less.

"I… I'll go with you, too," Pyrrha said. "If you'll have me, that is."

"Sure, I'll have you!" Ruby exclaimed eagerly. "That's kinda why I asked."

Pyrrha looked towards Jaune, and he nodded. Reassured, Pyrrha looked at Ruby again and smiled. "Thank you."

Ruby nodded, then turned to look at her father. Her expression grew serious again, and she walked towards him. His smile faded and he started to cross his arms, but Ruby stopped him by taking his hands in hers.

"Dad, I know it sounds like a lot… And it is a lot… Which is why I'm asking you to come with me," she said. "I'm going to need you if I'm gonna get through this. And when we find Yang, I know she's gonna need you too. So… please?"

Taiyang looked away sharply, as if fighting with himself to come up with a way to say no. But he couldn't. A heavy sigh escaped his lips, and he looked at her again, slowly shaking his head.

"Fine. You win, rose petal." He ruffled the hair on her head and fixed her cloak so it sat better on her shoulders. "You've got your mother's way with words, for better or worse."

Ruby grinned. She turned to look at the ocean ahead of them, vast and ever-changing with its endless possibilities. She had her friends' support now, but how would they actually find Weiss and Yang? Who would they have to fight to free them? And if they all got caught somehow…?

But now wasn't the time to doubt herself. Ruby was adamant in making it so that time would never come again.

_Weiss, Yang, I don't know where you are… But I promise we're gonna find you._


	42. Home

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Three: Fire**

**Chapter Two: Home**

* * *

" _Move, and your sister goes."_

" _BLAKE!"_

" _My, you really outdid yourself this time, child. I'll be kind and mend your broken toy, just this once. You may sit and watch while a master does his work – and perhaps take the time to reflect on your failings."_

" _What did you do to her?! What did you-"_

* * *

 

Yang curled up in her bed, her forehead furrowing as the last echoes of a shrill scream faded into the confines of her unconscious mind, and a single thought pulled her into the waking world.

_Something's wrong._

She opened her eyes, only for them to close on their own but a second later. She felt so… so tired, so _numb_. There was the world, and then there was her, floating, a phantom that didn't belong. Being awake was a terrible burden. If she could simply…

Just as she was about to succumb to the sleep's call, a memory of red, yellow and black flashed in the forefront of her mind, and she opened her eyes again. They met immediately with those very colors, plastered on the wall, and as she stared at them, contemplating the ways they pursued each other, making lines and shapes – the Fire Nation's insignia - another thought came into fruition.

_Home._

Yang blinked. With a force that seemed to surpass the limits of her body, she turned herself around to lie on her back. She looked at the ceiling, and the fiery drawing that ran across it set off a sense of familiarity inside her. The weight and feel of the bed below her, too – everything felt so familiar, yet so alien at the same time.

It had been so long.

It felt good to be in her room again.

…But how? How was she home? How did she get there – when – hadn't she been…

Yang pushed herself into a sitting position and looked around, her body in a constant trembling state. It didn't make sense. Nothing made sense. She was supposed to be in Vale, with… with her Dad, and… someone else? Her sister! But she didn't have a sister.

Ruby? No. Yes! Ruby! But something had happened, because… Blake? Blake. Something to do with Blake. Blake Blake Blake Blake-

A groan exploded out from her lips. Yang bent forward, gasping for air. Why was it so difficult to think? It was like her thoughts and memories were actively battling against her. If she could only piece them together…

A strand of hair fell in front of her eyes, and she brushed it away with a hand in reflex, anger starting to break through her mind's haze-

Yang jumped out her bed, her mouth opened in a silent scream. Her back hit the floor, sending a painful spike up her spine, but she was too busy staring at her hand to register it. She kicked against the floor, the bed, anything her legs could reach, tossing herself across the room as if she could somehow escape her arm - her charcoal-black arm - and the darkness that emanated from it-

Yang's eyes rolled into the back of her head, and her body fell limp on the floor.

* * *

Yang's bed creaked as a new weight was deposited on it, just a few inches from where she lay.

Something pressed into the side of her belly, and warmth slowly spread across her body.

In her sleep, she smiled.

* * *

When Yang woke up again, daylight was infiltrating her room through the windows' half-closed shutters. She turned away from the light and stared at the wall with unblinking eyes. The same numbness still infected her body and mind, though not as badly as before. At least now she could string thoughts together and keep hold of her memories, even vague as they were. Still, she barely dared to breathe.

She stayed like that for a long time – so long, the sun rose past the windows, leaving her room in an eerie dimness – before she finally found her courage. Turning onto her back, Yang raised her hand – her left hand, her good hand – and, with shaking fingers, grabbed the edge of the sheets that covered her and lifted them.

She closed her eyes. _Just look. Just look. It wasn't real. Just a nightmare._

It was real.

Her right arm, from her fingers to just past her elbow, was black. And not black like her skin had been burned. It was like her whole arm had been replaced… Replaced by something evil, twisted, something that was as far from human as anything could be.

Something Grimm.

A sudden convulsion rocked her body as she stared at the thing. The thing. Because it couldn't be part of her. It just wasn't. Because if it was, then she…

She sat and slid backwards until she hit the wall behind her, her instincts once again telling her to get far away from the thing. Her body convulsed again, and the hand dug into mattress, fingers piercing the soft material.

Not fingers. Claws.

Yang covered her mouth with her good hand. A sob broke through her lips, followed by another, and another, and suddenly she had lost all control of herself, only able to stare in horror at what had become of her, while tears streamed down her face.

And then something else made a sound inside the room – a quiet whimper. Yang froze as she heard the clinking of small steps against the wooden floor, then a canine yelp. A small black and white form jumped onto the bed, then hopped over to her side, peering at her face with inquisitive gray eyes.

"Z… Zwei?" Yang lowered her hand, tears stopping for the moment.

The fox-dog grinned at her, his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth. He nuzzled his head against her thigh, then sat on his hind legs and looked up at her, as if asking if she was better now.

"Zwei…" Yang smiled. "I missed you so much, buddy."

She made to pet him, then started in horror when she realized which hand she'd been bringing towards him. Gritting her teeth, Yang pressed the evil thing into the bed, focusing all her attention on it. There was no telling what it might do if she forgot about it for even a second.

Seemingly upset that his deserved petting had been cancelled, Zwei stood up and walked towards the thing, lowering his face as if to rub his cheek against it.

"Zwei, no!" Before he could get to that, though, Yang swooped him up and put him back down on her left side, then started to pat his head. "Don't get close to… to that thing there, Zwei. You could get hurt." _I could hurt you._ "You get that, boy?"

Zwei blinked at her a couple times, then tilted his head backward, offering his chin for her to scratch. Yang did as he asked, and her lips quirked into the slightest of smiles as he hummed contently.

"You've been sleeping here with me?" she asked absently-minded while she looked around at her room.

There was a cluster of pillows just below the windows, where she guessed Zwei had been resting before she woke him up. There were also two dog bowls in a corner, one with water and the other with food. So he hadn't just snuck in here by himself? That was… strange.

But not strange enough that she forgot what she was currently going through. There was so much she didn't understand. How had she come back home? How long had she been like this? And her father, and her sister and her friends, what had happened to them? Were they okay?

So many questions… Yang was starting to feel lightheaded again. But she couldn't just lie down and sleep again. She needed answers.

Yang stopped petting Zwei and dragged herself to the edge of her bed, then moved her legs so they dangled off it. She lowered her feet until they met the floor, then slowly stood, raising her hands level to her chest to keep her balance. Her legs were trembling like crazy, so much so that, for a moment, she was afraid they weren't going to hold her weight. But after a full minute of standing, the shaking was nearly gone, giving her confidence that she would be fine to walk.

She took a step forward, and immediately tumbled towards the floor. Luckily, she managed to grab the bedframe just in time to save herself from a nasty crash. "Damnit."

Yang got on her knees, and flinched when Zwei ran over to her and barked in her ear. He glared at her from above, then started to walk in circles around the bed, before finally stopping and planting a paw firmly on the mattress.

"I can't do that, Zwei. Need answers," she mumbled, only for him to bark at her again. Yang ignored him and walked over to her closet, supporting herself on the furniture on the way there.

She opened the closet and quickly selected a red and yellow robe. Normally she would be bit more selective when she walked around the palace, but looking fashionable wasn't exactly a priority of hers right now. The only thing she considered was how long the robe's sleeves were, so she could hide her – the thing.

Yang put on the robe, then started towards the door. Before she got to it, though, Zwei jumped from the bed and stopped in front of her, growling and dragging his little claws against the floor.

"Zwei, _please_. I'm going out there. I'll be fine!" she said. "Don't believe me? Then come, boy. You can take care of me."

She patted her thigh, and Zwei's ears perked up. He hopped over to her side, then kept up with her as she exited the room. He was so small he didn't even reach her knee, and he probably wouldn't be able to do anything if she did hurt herself, but his loyal presence alone gave her strength.

It had been years since she'd last been at the palace, but it didn't seem to have changed at all, so Yang had no problem finding her way around. Not that she had much of a destination. She knew who she wanted – no, not _wanted_ – who she had to talk to, but they could be anywhere, so she just headed towards the main hall.

As she walked down a hallway, a servant came walking from the opposite direction, too busy balancing two stacks of clothes in her arms to notice Yang.

"Hey, could you please tell me where-" Yang started to say, but stopped as the servant jumped in surprise and dropped all the clothes.

"Oh! Princess! I'm – I'm so sorry!" the woman said, dropping to her knees. "This is such an embarrassment. I'll fix this fast, I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize. I'm the one who scared you," Yang said. "Here, let me help."

The servant's eyes went wide as Yang crouched to her level and started to pick up the stray clothes. "P-Princess – Your Highness – This was my mistake. Even if it wasn't, you shouldn't…"

"Sorry, but I don't wanna hear it. I just woke up after I don't know how many days, so I kinda welcome the exercise," Yang said. "Also, last I heard, I wasn't even a princess anymore, so." She shrugged, then offered the clothes she'd gathered so far. "Here, hold onto these while I grab the-"

Noticing the servant's wide-eyed stare had gone from embarrassed to horrified, Yang froze and looked down at the arm with which she was holding out the clothes. Her mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. Finally, she simply put the clothes in a stack in front of the woman, then quickly gathered the rest, using only her good hand and keeping the other pressed to her body.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "Do you… Do you maybe know where my – the Fire Lord is?"

The servant pulled back, startled. "The war room, I believe, Y-Your Highness. They are having a… a strategy meeting."

Yang nodded. "Thank you."

The servant picked up the clothes, jumped to her feet, and after a quick bow, walked away in a hurry.

Yang stayed crouched, taking deep breaths in, deep breaths out, while trying to dispel from her mind the terrible look that woman had given her.

Zwei walked over to her and rubbed his head against her leg.

"Hmm? Right, boy. You're right." Yang wiped her eyes quickly and stood up. "War room it is, then."

* * *

Getting to the war room was easy enough. What wasn't easy, however, was actually going inside. Yang must have stayed at the door for minutes, staring at it like it was the opening to a bottomless cave full of horrors, while the guards stationed to guard the room watched with restrained curiosity. Zwei was in a similar state of mind, walking circles around her feet and rubbing his head against her ankles, and every once in a while letting loose a whimper.

Zwei had feared Raven since Yang's eighth birthday, when her father had brought him to her as a gift. _A palace is no place for a mutt_ , she'd said. _And she's past the age of embracing such childish things. She's a princess of the Fire Nation, my own flesh and blood. It's time she starts acting like it._

But Yang had sneaked Zwei into her room night after night, with her father's help, and eventually Raven gave up. She didn't look the other way – rather, she just stopped caring, which was often what she ended up doing with most matters related to her daughter. It was pretty much the only thing Yang could always count on her mother to do.

"I know, boy. It's okay," Yang whispered. _I'm scared too_.

She looked at the guards nervously, and shedding the last sheds of her dignity, crouched and grabbed Zwei, holding her close to her chest with her good arm. Then, taking a final deep breath, she pushed open the door and went inside.

She tried to be quiet, taking the smallest steps possible, but it was for naught. The door clicked shut behind her, and every voice in the room fell quiet. There was only a half dozen army officers in the meeting, sitting on their knees around a table map, but Yang felt like she was being stared at by a whole city worth of people.

And then there was the Fire Lord, the only one standing on her feet, as was proper. She had her back turned to the table and her advisors, hands joined behind her back. She looked over her shoulder, frigid eyes examining Yang up and down for a moment, before she turned her head to its former position.

"Nice of you to join us, Princess," Raven said. "Please, take your seat. You haven't missed much."

She sounded casual enough, but Yang had learned how to identify the nuances of her mother's manner of speech, so she didn't miss the edge of bitterness in her voice. Yang couldn't be sure whether she was angry at her or something else entirely, though. In that way, Raven was unpredictable.

Though if she didn't obey her order – even if it had been phrased as an invitation – then there would be no wondering about the Fire Lord's anger. Silent as she could be in her current physical state, Yang shambled over to the table and sat down next to one of the officers. Zwei mewled in her arm, and she gripped him more surely, caressing the top of his head.

No reprimand came, but Yang lowered her head anyway and bit her lip. She felt like a child all of a sudden – a helpless, good-for-nothing little girl – and she was sure the officers saw her exactly as that, too.

"Resume your report, Lieutenant," the Fire Lord ordered.

"Yes, my Lord," the addressed officer said, bowing his head respectfully.

Yang didn't recognize him, though she had met many high-ranked members of her mother's army throughout the years. It was possible they had been introduced once, and she simply didn't remember her.

"The faunus struck as had been predicted, and General Vernal met them with staunch resistance. However, their numbers were much greater than what she had been led to believe," he said. "My belief is, the reports she'd received did not account for any possible growth of the White Fang, and in their trek to Atlas, they almost doubled their numbers."

"Still, they are mostly untrained peasants. Little more than street rats with pitchforks and the rare aptitude for earthbending," Raven said. "Lady Vernal was one of my trusted Generals. She wouldn't fall so easily to such a force, regardless of their numbers."

"Yes, my Lord. Except they were being led by Adam Taurus himself," the Lieutenant said. "He took charge of the invasion and broke through the General's defenses, infiltrating the Atlas keep, before facing off with her at the last line of defense. It was there that, presumably, she fell by his hand."

"Your informants are feeding you nonsense," the Fire Lord's voice struck like a whip. "Vernal is a true prodigy. I trained her myself, and I saw the inklings of a warrior without match in her. If it's true that she fell to Taurus, then there was dishonor at play."

 _You sure believe in your general, mom_ , Yang thought bitterly.

"So Atlas has fallen to the faunus of the White Fang," Raven said. "How many of our troops did we manage to move from the city before the attack? How many were lost?"

"The retreat was being handled as you ordered, my Lord. Half our forces stationed in Atlas had left the city by the day of the attack. When General Vernal realized that victory was unlikely, she ordered the bulk of the remaining soldiers to retreat, while she stayed behind with a select force to hold off the White Fang."

"A wise and honorable decision," Raven said, somber. "She didn't make it out alive, then?"

"Well, the reports about her battle with Taurus were clear. But there are many factors that remain unknown to us still. There's been no definitive word, so it is possible-"

"Nevermind. I didn't ask for theories, Lieutenant." The Fire Lord turned around, her fiery eyes seeming like they could pulverize the officer where he sat. "We will hold a ceremony to honor her life and death as a warrior. You will attend, Lieutenant, and I expect not a word about what is _possible_ and what is _not_ of you then."

The man lowered his head, his trembling plain for everyone to see. "Yes, my Lord."

"You are dismissed."

He left the room immediately, his feet moving as fast as he could afford without risking offending the Fire Lord. The war room fell into an uncomfortable silence as the remaining officers bowed their heads and stared fixedly at the map, while Raven stood above them, a bottomless fire burning in her eyes.

After what felt like an eternity, the Fire Lord spoke again. "Discontinue our current retreat plans. The White Fang has grown too large, there is no use in losing soldiers attempting to delay their advance. Communicate to all our troops that they are to leave their positions immediately and converge on Fort Argus. We will meet Taurus' forces there and put the final nail on the Earth Kingdom's coffin at last. Are my orders clear?"

The officers nodded and agreed verbally.

"Do we have any word on Hazel Rainart?" the Fire Lord asked.

"I'm afraid not, my Lord. The coward has not been sighted since-"

Raven turned on him, the simple movement causing the officer to recoil in fear. "Are patience and caution the attributes of a coward? Don't speak of what you don't know," she said. "And the Avatar?"

For the first time since she'd entered the room and sat down, Yang raised her head and looked straight at her mother. They met eyes immediately, and Yang fled Raven's stare in reflex, but not before seeing the haughty smile that tugged at her lips.

"There have been no sightings of the Avatar recently, my Lord. Her group was last seen traversing the edges of the Rift two weeks ago, my Lord, but our scouts lost her shortly after."

Raven's only response to the report was a nod.

"That will be all. Carry out your new orders swiftly, and prepare for departure to the Earth Kingdom," she said. "You are all dismissed." Her eyes fell on Yang. "Except you, Princess. We have a lot to talk about."

All at once, the officers got up and filed out of the room. They didn't say a word, but Yang could feel their judgmental stares on her until the last of them was gone.

Yang kept her eyes trained on the table before her. A slight prickling sensation was starting to run up her right arm, but she didn't give it a thought with the Fire Lord's terrifying presence imposing on her. It was like a great fire which she didn't dare as much as look at, or else it envelop her and burn her to a crisp. Zwei was similarly afraid, though he was making an attempt at calming her by caressing her hand with the tip of his snout.

"Have you taken your medicine yet?"

Yang looked up, taken completely by surprise. Medicine? Was that some weird way of taunting her?

"You haven't," Raven said. "Stay where you are."

The Fire Lord strode past her and walked out the door. Yang heard her talking to the guards, but couldn't make out exactly what she was saying. There was a buzzing in her ears she hadn't noticed before – or had it not been there until now?

"The medicine will be brought here shortly." Raven returned to the room and, another surprise, took a seat opposite to Yang. "You'll probably feel a slight dizziness before it arrives. Nothing that you can't handle."

She rested her elbows on the table and leaned forward, interlacing her fingers in front of her mouth.

"Well? You must have questions you want answered," Raven said. "You wouldn't be here otherwise, would you? If there's one thing I've always admired about you, daughter, it's your tenacity to get what you want." She grinned. "Even if you don't know what that is half the time."

Yang's shoulders slumped. She let go of Zwei on her lap, and he turned nervously a few times before laying down.

The buzzing in her ears had disappeared, and she'd grown accustomed to the prickling of her arm. And the dizziness her mother had mentioned – she didn't feel a trace of it. If anything, her mind was the clearest it had been since she'd woken up.

Of course, that did nothing to the turmoil of emotions that swirled inside her mind. "Dad."

Raven raised an eyebrow, and Yang realized how dumb and childish she sounded.

"Where's my father?" she asked again, choosing each word carefully in her mind before saying it. "Is he okay?"

"Presumably, he is with the Avatar. And you heard the same report I did – no one knows where those two are," Raven said. "I do believe he is fine. Taiyang has an uncanny ability to survive even the most terrible storms. Whether that's been good for him, well…"

She smiled, but her eyes sparkled with something dark.

"My sister… Is she okay?" Yang knew Ruby's location was unknown, but she had to ask, for her conscience's sake.

"Yes. I think I would have heard about it if something bad had happened to your _sister_." Raven rolled her eyes. "Good to know you've grown a bond with the Avatar. You've never been stellar with girls your age."

Yang looked away, and her eyes naturally wandered to the sleeve that hid her right arm. She turned her head away sharply and laid her good hand on Zwei, trying to stop it from shaking.

The Fire Lord stared at her all the while, as if waiting for her next question. Yang could tell that she hadn't missed the movements she'd just made, slight as they were, and had understood the meaning behind each of them.

"Cinder Fall got carried away," Raven said, her hands curling into fists. "I don't know what possessed her to join your sister's merry band, and what she hoped to accomplish by posing as her friend. She's always had a habit of playing with her food, but this was something else. Her power might be getting to her head."

She stopped talking, and Yang was surprised to find genuine anger in her eyes. It was probably anger towards the insubordination of one of her servants, but Yang couldn't help but hope that she was perhaps a little angry because of what had been done to her daughter, too.

"I don't trust her report of what happened. Not entirely," Raven said plainly. "Is it true it wasn't her intent to destroy your arm? That you sacrificed it to protect your friend?"

"I… It wasn't like that. I thought I could redirect her lightning – and I did, I did, but…" Yang's voice faded, her stomach turning as memories of that terrible night flashed before her eyes.

"I see," Raven said. "Your father should have taught you better."

"He didn't teach me," Yang said, and too late realized that wasn't the right thing to say. "It wasn't his fault. It was mine. If I had been better-"

"It was Cinder's fault, and I've made that clear to her." The Fire Lord paused. "It was an honorable act, to put yourself before your friend like that. I only hope it was worth it."

Yang thought she'd never felt so conflicted. On one hand, she couldn't remember her mother ever praising her like that. On the other hand…

 _It wasn't worth it_.

A pang of guilt hit Yang as she realized the full extent of what she'd just thought. Of course saving Blake's life had been worth it, even if it had meant losing an arm.

Even if she hadn't actually lost it.

"What… what happened to me?" Yang said, tears building in her eyes. "Did you do this to me?"

"No. That's another of Cinder's deeds," Raven said. "I… can't explain it."

"What do you mean you can't explain it?!"

Yang jumped to her feet and dragged her sleeve back, exposing her Grimm arm to the room. Raven flinched and looked away, but Yang stepped closer, almost tripping over the table, and held the hand in front of her.

"Look at this! It's – you've got to know something, mom!" Yang shouted. "You can't say you don't know! You know something! _I'm your daughter_!"

"I _can't_ explain it," Raven said, reaching for Yang's hand. "Yang, I understand this seems terrible, and it is, but don't you think it's better than-"

"NO!" Yang swatted her hand away. "It's not better! Just look at me – I'm – I'm – Why did this have to happen? What did I do to deserve this? I just wanted to be good, mom, and n-now look! I'm-"

Her voice died as suddenly, the world doubled in front of her eyes. She stumbled back, almost stepping on Zwei as he barked at her ankles, and tried to reach for something to hold onto, but there was nothing.

Yang crashed on the floor. She doubled over, holding her head as every part of her body seemed to burn - but none more than her arm.

The last thing she saw was Zwei crouching next to her face, whining and clawing the floor in panic, and behind him, her mother, her face a mask of sorrow and guilt.

* * *

Yang woke up back in her bed, though it took her a while to realize where she was, and that she was awake at all. Her head felt lightly, impossibly light, like the first time she'd woken up, yet multiplied. She could almost forget what had happened in the war room, and what was hidden beneath her blankets.

"Try not to move too much. You'll be feeling woozy for a while."

Yang startled at the voice, then again when she noticed her mother sitting on the edge of the bed beside her. She had a tray in her hands, and on it was a glass and a jar filled with some greenish liquid Yang didn't recognize.

"The medicine is strongest right after you ingest it. You'll probably fall asleep in a couple minutes," Raven said, putting the tray down on the nightstand next to them. "The effects should last a day, two at most. You'll know when it's worn off, and then you'll take a new glassful – or call someone to help you if you can't do it on your own."

Yang stared at her, mouth agape. As if her lightheadedness wasn't enough to utterly confused, now Raven Branwen, the Fire Lord, her cold-hearted mother, was being _caring_.

"This is a one-time deal. I am not your nurse," Raven said, as if she'd read her thoughts.

She looked towards the corner of the room, where Zwei was loyally and bravely standing guard – from a safe distance.

"The dog can stay with you. I grant it permission to walk this palace," Raven said, and her eyes narrowed. "But please refrain from bringing it into war meetings, for my dignity and yours. The dog's, too. He knows nothing of combat, and it shows."

Zwei growled at her, but stopped immediately when she threw him a mean look.

"Don't forget your medicine," Raven said, getting up.

"I don't like it," Yang mumbled. "It makes me feel weird. I can barely… think…"

"You'll get used to it. It's that, or a repeat of the previous fiasco."

Yang couldn't disagree with that. Much as she hated how the medicine affected her mind, she'd take that over the searing pain that had assaulted her.

Raven gave her a lasting look, then started towards the door. Yang lay back in her bed. Her head lolled to the side on her pillow, and her eyelids, heavy as lead, started to close…

Just as blackness overtook her vision, she saw the glimmer of two amber eyes in the corner next to her bed. She screamed and kicked herself away. Her head spun because of the sudden movement, and she started to fall from the bed, but strong arms caught her from beneath and returned her to it.

"What the hell was that? Do you _want_ to hurt yourself?!" Raven yelled.

"I saw her, mom! I saw Cinder!" Yang said. "Right there, I saw her."

She nodded towards the corner, and Raven sighed. "Cinder isn't here, Yang. I sent her on a mission far away from Vacuo, and it will take her days to return."

"I k-know what I saw."

Even as she said it, she felt foolish, and the way her mother looked at her like she was a child only made her feel worse.

With a flick of her wrist, Raven conjured a small flame and held it towards the corner where Cinder had been observing Yang from, lighting up the darkness. There was nothing to be seen there.

"You're seeing things," Raven said. She stared at the corner for a moment, deep in thought, before she extinguished the flame and put a hand on Yang's shoulder. "I'll station two of my best guards outside your room. Will that make you feel better?"

No matter how strong these guards were, Yang knew they would be no match for Cinder. Twenty of them wouldn't be a match for her. But at least… At least then she'd know Cinder was there.

Or wasn't there.

"I feel so useless," she whispered.

"You're not. You're still the flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood," Raven said. "But your fight is over, daughter. It's time to rest."

And then, possibly the weirdest thing that Yang would ever experience in her life, happened. Her mother leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead, took a lock of her hair and put it behind her ear, then left the room without another word.

Just a second after she'd closed the door, Zwei jumped on the bed and lied down next to Yang. She hugged him, closed her eyes, and slept.

* * *

The days after were like hazy memories. Yang spent much of them in bed, except for when the medicine's effect on her body and mind became less potent, allowing her to venture away from her bed without someone needing to guide. Still, she never wandered far from the palace, afraid that her arm would act up without her medicine available to quell the pain – and she doubted she'd be able to exit the palace even if she wanted to, with the looks the guards gave her whenever she came close to an exit. They must have gotten orders from the Fire Lord to keep her inside.

Oddly enough, she wasn't upset. Yang felt she should be, but with everything that was happening in her life, it was difficult to complain about being grounded. Besides, the fewer people saw her arm, the better.

She had grown accustomed to it, somewhat. She hadn't accepted it as part of her, not at all, and the sight of it still produced all kinds of negative emotions inside her. But she was past the point of pretending it wasn't there, or that one day, she'd wake up and her flesh would be back to normal, as if nothing had happened to it.

Dealing with that reality wouldn't have been so easy if it weren't for Zwei. Wherever she went, the fox-dog never left her side, except when he had to take care of his bodily needs – he was an impeccably-mannered gentleman, after all. With her permission, he'd abandoned his pillows on the floor to sleep with her on her bed. It was a simple comfort, to have him near every day and night, but it meant the world to her.

And then there was her mother. No matter how many days passed, her changed attitude towards Yang didn't get any easier to swallow. Yang kept expecting Raven to get fed up with her and revert to the person she knew, but that never happened. Yang was starting to think she had suffered a blow to the head, and that was the reason she was so different.

Of course, she still didn't compare all that well to most other mothers. The patronizing looks hadn't gone anywhere, her tone was still sharp as ever, and when other people were around, the Fire Lord took over entirely. Raven Branwen was, and would always be, a warlord at heart.

But there was a warmth to her now, and as hard as Yang tried to see through it to discover the same old cruelty that had plagued her childhood, she never did. Her mother really cared about her, and that became an undisputable fact when Yang finally dared to ask why everyone was calling her Princess again.

"Because, daughter, you never lost your title. Not officially, that is," Raven had said during one of her visits, staring at a wall with her hands on her back, as if she were examining a masterpiece of a painting.

"But I thought…" Yang frowned. "You sent Cinder to kill Dad and I."

"I sent her to bring you back home, because you did betray me and your Nation. Believe me, I had every intention of taking away your title when she brought you here. But as that never happened…" Raven said. "Reports of your supposed betrayal were never very reliable, anyway. Could anyone be sure you hadn't acted under the coercion of the Water Tribe, or even your own father or uncle? Why, you're just a child, and surrounded by bad apples."

"What are you saying?" Yang asked.

"I'm _saying_ if the Fire Lord says her daughter is still her worthy successor, then that is truth." Raven looked back at Yang on the bed, her eyes wandering to the blackened arm that lay limp across her lap, then looked away again. "And if she did do something wrong, it would seem she's paid a harsh price for it already."

"So _this_ is punishment?" Yang raised her Grimm arm, lips trembling. "For defying you? Is that what you think?"

"Did I say that? Did I say your suffering is deserved?" Raven turned around. "You fought for something you believed in. I didn't agree with it, but I respected your fight. And yet you were the enemy, so I had to reduce you to just that – and it might not have made things hurt less for you, but it did for me." She paused. "Or so I thought."

The Fire Lord had then busied herself with checking if the medicine in her room was still enough the next dose, then stormed off. The guards outside must have thought Yang had made her furious somehow, with the thunderous noise her steps made.

But Yang knew better, and from then on, she _almost_ found herself looking forward to her mother's visits. Almost.

* * *

"-is she really, though? I've only been sent to bring her food a couple times, but the looks she gave me… Jeez, she would have killed me if she could reach me, I'm sure. Didn't strike me as very princess-like."

Yang groaned and turned over on her bed. Great, it was those two again. The soldiers that had been assigned to guard her room weren't always the same, changing with the time and day of the week. There were about ten in total, and for the most part, they did their job in respectful silence.

Except these two. Whenever they were in the same shift, Yang could count on them talking to each other from the moment they arrived to when they were replaced, and quite loudly at that. It wasn't so bad when she had just taken her medicine, as she could just sleep through their shift then, but it had been almost a day since her last dose, and their talking was driving her mental.

"Well, you can believe it whatever crazy conspiracies you want, but the reality is she is a princess. And I mean, it's not like _our_ princess is a very soft-spoken individual. Remember when she was a kid? And now she's got that… you know…"

"Yeah, she's kinda terrifying. But still hot!"

"Yeah, man! Freaky hot!"

Yang sat up and glared at the door, ready to storm towards it and slam it open, and show those two just how _terrifying_ she could be. But something about their conversation gave her pause. She thought they'd been talking about her from the beginning, but…

Had she missed something?

"Maybe it's a culture thing. We both know how our women are, but maybe the ones up North are also kinda feisty? They must get antsy, only having the ocean to stare at all day. That'd make me a grumpy person too."

"Well, they're also just one step above complete barbarians. I heard they live in caves, man. Ice cold caves. And they hunt walruses for dinner. I can't imagine that's an easy living, even for a princess."

"Maybe life's better for her now that she's our prisoner!"

"Don't be stupid. She wouldn't have tried to escape, then."

"Right. Well, what I've learned is to not mess with Water Tribe women. I'm gonna stick to the local for the future."

"I second that, brother."

Yang's jaw dropped. They were talking about Weiss. Weiss was here. And she was being kept in a cell somewhere.

Yang looked around at her room, and Zwei sleeping at her feet, guilt worming its way into her mind.

She knew what she needed to do.

* * *

Yang waited until midnight to leave her room. She took Zwei with her, of course, and told her guards that she would just be taking a quick stroll with him to get her blood flowing. If they found that weird or hard to believe, they didn't say so – no lowly soldier would dare question the daughter of the Fire Lord.

But Yang knew it wouldn't be so easy to leave the palace. She could certainly _convince_ the guards to let her past, but then word would inevitably reach her mother, and Yang didn't want that, having a feeling she wouldn't like her daughter talking to the war prisoner.

Luckily, Yang knew a handful of secret exits out of the palace. She'd used them often as a kid to smuggle Zwei in and out. And then as a teenager, she'd found other uses for the passages. Even Dad wouldn't have approved of those.

At the very end of the royal library, Yang pushed a bookshelf aside with her shoulder, then opened the tiny door on the wall behind it and went through it, having to duck as it was nearly half her height. Then she walked through the passage with Zwei at toll. It was dark, and a little firebending would have helped immensely, but she didn't even try.

Previous experiments had wielded nothing but disappointment.

Eventually, she emerged outside the palace walls. Yang looked around to make sure no one was there to see her, then walked away briskly to the east. The royal prison was just a few minutes away from the palace grounds, and it was there that Weiss was being kept.

Those two guards really talked too much.

She made towards the main prison tower, where the most important – and dangerous – prisoners were kept, using the shadows to avoid being spotted by the soldiers that patrolled the area. She'd like to think uncle Qrow would be proud of her, but he'd be more likely to call her supposed stealth _laughable_ – and proud as she was, Yang would have had to agree with him.

She was just about to reach the tower when her final obstacle revealed itself, one that no manner of stealth could circumvent. There was a soldier stationed directly in front of the entrance, his body blocking the door. He was distracted with unwrapping a sandwich he'd taken from his pack, but even so, his field of view was such that, no matter which angle Yang approached him from, he would easily see her.

There was only one option left, then. She didn't want to resort to this, but her visit was a matter of grave importance.

"Alright, Zwei." She crouched next to the fox-dog and patted his butt. "Go take a bite."

He yelped happily and took off running towards the guard. He slowed somewhat as he got close, his little legs lowering to bring his body close to the ground, and then he launched himself at the man, snatching the sandwich with his mouth. By the point the guard realized what had happened, Zwei was already making a swift escape.

"Ey! That dog took my momma's sandwich!" the guard yelled. "Somebody stop that criminal!"

He went after Zwei, but the dog only ran faster, and soon they both gone from sight. Yang wished Zwei a good meal, then walked to the door and went inside.

The tower was tall, but the space inside was notably small. The first floor had only a lone table and a chair, only meant as a resting area for the guards. Then there was the spiral stairway that lead to the higher levels, each only containing one small cell. It was a prison designed to isolate people, and it worked wonders.

Yang nearly missed Weiss as she ascended the tower. The princess was lying on her rock-hard bed, hunched up with her face facing a wall. The only reason Yang stopped was because she caught a glimpse of white hair. It had lost so much of its luster, it only barely stood out against the stones that surrounded her.

"Weiss…?" Yang called, getting off the stairs and stopping before the cell.

No response came. Hesitantly, Yang raised her left hand and knocked on the bars.

"Weiss?"

"What?!" In the blink of an eye, Weiss was sitting upright, her head whipping around as she shot a furious glare at Yang. "Haven't you learned not to bother me?! Or should I-"

Her eyes widened as she recognized Yang. Her shoulders went slack as she got off the bed and walked towards the bars. She snuck a hand through them, and with trembling fingers, touched Yang's own hand.

Weiss jumped back, covering her mouth, and sat down on her bed. "Yang. It's really you! I'm not going crazy…"

"Nope. I'm the real deal, Ice Queen." Yang smiled shakily. "Missed me?"

"Missed you?! I didn't know if you were even…" Weiss clutched her chest, gasping for air. "I've been sitting in this cell, thinking… Just _thinking_ , for so long. Seeing you – I can't even explain-"

She stopped talking entirely, looking as if she'd pass out if another word left her mouth. Yang ran a hand back through her hair, a wave of anger and disgust striking her she looked at Weiss.

"You look so thin," Yang said. "This is awful. How can they do this to you?"

"I'm fine. They bring me enough food everyday. I've… I've never been that big of an eater, anyway," Weiss said.

"This is so wrong." Yang shook her head. "I can't let you stay like this. I'm gonna break you out right now-"

"Don't. I've already tried to escape once," Weiss said. "I almost made it out of the city before they caught me. They're being more careful now. I wouldn't make it far, even with your help." She bit her lip. "You don't look so good yourself."

Yang stepped back, fighting the urge to hide her right arm behind her back.

"You must be paler than me. And you're shaking so much…" Weiss said. "You should sit down."

"Don't worry about me. It's just my medicine starting to wear off," Yang said. "I'll get better once I take it again."

"Yeah? And what kinda of back-alley tonic is it that you're taking?" Weiss asked sharply. "Have you looked yourself in the mirror? Your eyes are… Yang, seriously, how are you able to walk like this?"

Yang got on her knees and closed her eyes. She felt the world spinning around her, and herself drifting off to the side as if an ocean wave had caught me, but when she opened her eyes again, she hadn't moved an inch.

Weiss sat in front of her on the other side of the bars, her eyes wavering. "Can… can you show me…?"

Yang breathed in sharply, a lump in her throat robbing her of her words. Feeling like she was about to fall apart, she grabbed the hem of her right sleeve and pulled it back, revealing the dark flesh underneath it.

Weiss became stiff, her eyes widening somewhat – before she pursed her lips and, with a steely determination, reached between the bars and grabbed Yang's arm. Yang tried to yank it back, but Weiss' grip around her wrist was unbreakable. And then, while Yang 's trembling threatened to undo her, Weiss let go and dragged her fingers up her arm until they met Yang's.

"I'm sorry," Weiss said. "I couldn't do anything, and now you're like this. I should have stopped her, but…"

"What are you talking about?" Yang said, tears coming to her eyes as Weiss clasped her hand. "Weiss, what-"

"You don't remember. Of course you don't." Weiss grimaced. "After Cinder turned, she kidnapped us on her Nevermore. She landed it a few minutes later and told me to heal you, but I had barely any water on me. E-even if I had a whole lake, I'm not sure I could have done anything – but I should have tried anyway, I'm so sorry-"

"If you say you couldn't do anything, then I believe you," Yang said. "It's not your fault."

"Y-yeah. Well, uh… Stuff happened…" Weiss looked away. "And then she got us on the Nevermore again. Hours later, she landed on an island on the middle of nowhere. She took you away, and I tried to follow but the stupid bird stopped me, and when she came back… You were like this."

Yang looked down at her arm. "So Cinder made my arm… Grimm? How?"

"I don't know. She wasn't in a talking mood," Weiss said. "I'm so sorry."

Yang got up, leaning on a wall as a pain spike through the back of her skull. She needed to get back to her room before she collapsed. But she wasn't done talking to Weiss.

"And then Cinder brought us here," she said. "You've been here all this time? They must be using you as… as leverage, against the Water Tribe. Right?"

"It would seem so," Weiss agreed bitterly. "And also, though less obviously, as bait."

"Bait?" Yang repeated. "Bait for who?"

 _Ruby_. Her mind caught up to Weiss' reasoning a second later.

"You really think so?" she said hopefully. "I get that Ruby is the Avatar, but shouldn't the Fire Nation be more worried about the Earth Kingdom and the White Fang right now?"

"You'd think so. But it's clear your mother has a grudge against her," Weiss said. "Why else would she want her dead so bad? It's not like Ruby is more of a problem now than before."

"Maybe she's afraid of what Ruby's might do to rescue you. Me too, for that matter," Yang said. "Crap. I know Ruby's gonna do something stupid, but – Wait, what did you say?"

Yang turned around and looked at Weiss, eyes wild.

"What? I thought you were living with the Fire Lord in her palace?" Weiss frowned. "You didn't know?"

* * *

"You want her dead?!"

Yang kicked the war room's door open and stormed inside. The officers gathered there gasped in shock and outrage, but their reaction, though certainly louder, paled compared to the Fire Lord's deadly glare.

"Princess," Raven said slowly, turning to face her. "You're interrupting a meeting vital to the Fire Nation's war efforts. You'll apologize, and after this is over, I'll see to this urgent matter of yours."

"Hell no! I don't care about your stupid war, we're going to talk right now!" Yang shouted. "Explain this!"

She tossed a piece of parchment at the table, and it unrolled on its own, revealing a drawing of Ruby. Written above it was _THE AVATAR,_ and under it, _WANTED DEAD_.

"This is an outrage!" one of the officers exclaimed. "It seems Your Highness' injury affected more than her arm!"

"Shut up!" Yang barked at him. "All of you, _out_!"

Yang pointed at the door with her Grimm arm, and after a nod from the Fire Lord, the officers exited in a hurry.

"You're really testing my patience, Yang," Raven said, clenching her fists. "You think you can just barge in and yell at me in front of my subordinates? Have some respect."

"You want to kill my sister, and you expect me to give you respect?" Yang said. "Dad, too? And you're keeping Weiss prisoner, almost starving her to death! Why? I don't understand why you would do these things!"

"Oh, please. I don't have to explain myself to you." Raven scoffed. "Grow up, Yang. Get some perspective."

"You're just insane," Yang muttered. "I can't believe I thought you'd changed."

Raven's lips took on a scornful smile. "I thought the same about you, but evidently, I was just as wrong," she said. "You've spent all your life fighting, searching every corner of the world for meaning, and all you've gained from it is _suffering_. You gave life your all, and time after time, life kicked you in the face. And now I give you a chance to stop, to heal, I forgive you for everything you've done – and you _spit on my face_."

Yang opened her mouth to talk, but in the blink of an eye, her mother was in front of her, holding her chin with a hand. The fury in her eyes paralyzed Yang, erasing everything else but an all-consuming fear.

"And for _what_? A sister you barely even know, and the father who kept her a secret for all your life? What a joke," Raven said. "I've given up everything for you. But you're too much of an ungrateful child to ever see that."

Suddenly, pain flooded Yang's system. She jerked back, breaking free from her mother's hand, and fell to her knees. Her lungs burned as she struggled to keep the air inside of her.

The world was shattering around her. Somehow, the pain was even worse than the first time.

"We need to get you back to your room," the Fire Lord said while she reached for her, a note of urgency in her voice. "Hold on while-"

Yang slapped her hand away. "You know what I see?" she panted. "I see a bitter… lonely… spiteful old woman. A woman so bad at being a mother… she couldn't love her daughter, even when she tried to. How sad… is that?"

She stood up and limped towards the door, feeling her mother's stare on the back of her neck all the while.

"I don't hate you." Yang stopped to lean on the doorway. "I just pity you."

* * *

Yang fell on her bed, and as she finally relinquished control, pain flared through her body anew. Her back rose off the mattress, her arms trashed in wild abandon, and a soundless scream filled her throat.

Sweat running down her face, she looked at the jar of medicine beside her bed. She reached for it, gritting her teeth, until her fingers closed around the handle… And she tossed it aside, the glass breaking against a wall, its liquid content splashing everywhere.

_Screw you. Screw your medicine._

Zwei jumped into the bed, and using the last reserved of self-control in her, she wrapped her arms around him.

_Come at me again, life._

_I'm ready._

* * *


	43. Into Hot Waters

_Water. Earth. Fire. Air._

_Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world._

_Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished._

_Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked._

_Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone._

_But I believe that Ruby can save the world._

* * *

**Book Three: Fire**

**Chapter Three: Into Hot Waters**

* * *

Winter's royal ship glided along the water, the sound of its engines barely noticeable over the waves that crashed around it. It was a sunny morning, but the ship remained unseen nonetheless as it gently made its way towards an island, skirting around its shores.

"This should be far enough, yes? Any farther, and we risk stumbling into patrolling ships," Winter whispered, standing at the ship's prow.

Her hands rose and fell as she manipulated the steam surrounding the vessel. She took great care to not let it gather too closely to the ship, as that would only make its approach more conspicuous. At the same time, she had to keep the fog from spreading too far and dissipating. It was a constant balancing act, one she maintained quite easily.

"Your thoughts, Taiyang?" she asked. "This is your homeland. I defer to your judgment."

Standing beside her, Taiyang scratched his chin, looking thoughtful, before he shrugged and waved at the island.

"Can't say I've got any experience skulking around these waters like this," he said. "I'm gonna defer your judgment right back at you, if that's good with you."

"You make a fair point… I suppose." She gave him a skeptical look, then stopped her bending for a moment to gesture to her crew. "We'll make our landing at that shore. Find a secluded spot. Keep the engines running – we won't be staying for long."

"Bummer. And I was so sure you were starting to warm up to me," Taiyang said, pouting.

"Oh, Taiyang, there was never any need for warming up. You're a dear, compared to your brother-in-law," Winter said, her lips quirking ever so slightly. "Now go wake up your daughter. You know how she can be in the morning sometimes, and we can't afford to dawdle here."

"Yes, captain," he said, and bowed his head in deference. "I cannot thank you enough for bringing us this far, Winter."

"I was only doing my rightful duty. An alliance is only as good as the bonds of trust and companionship at its core," she said.

"Hmm… Still." Taiyang took her hand and blew a soft kiss on it. "It was a pleasure and an honor."

He nodded, then headed to the ship's sleeping cabins to gather the Avatar and her friends. Once he was out of sight, Winter allowed herself a smile, and turned her attention back to disguising their approach towards the island.

"Flatterer. If only she took after him a little more…"

* * *

They docked the ship behind a cliff overlooking the western shores, hiding their presence from the rest of the island. The boarding ramp was lowered, and after a quick farewell, Taiyang, Jaune and Pyrrha went down to the beach. Ruby, however, took a little longer to leave.

"Uhm, Winter?" she said, lingering at the top of the ramp. "I've got a favor to ask you, if you don't mind…"

Winter sighed. "I suppose you want a farewell hug?"

"Oh?" Ruby's face brightened. "Yeah! Farewell hug!"

She practically jumped on the older woman, nearly knocking her to the floor with how careless she was. For her part, Winter appeared unfazed – though Ruby didn't fail to notice that she _did_ hug her back, if only for a couple seconds.

"Okay, that was nice, but I wasn't actually going to ask you for a hug," Ruby said as she hopped away.

"You weren't? Well. That's, ah…" Winter cleared her throat. "What is it, then?"

"You know how I'm leaving my staff behind, and Pyrrha's leaving her shield? Because it would be way too easy to identify us if we carried them around with us?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, I am aware," Winter said. "If you have another belonging like that you think you should leave behind, there's still time for you to drop it in your room."

"Time's not the issue…"

Ruby bowed her head, biting her lip. Slowly, she brought her shaking hands to the knot of the cloak around her neck, and undid it. She folded the fabric in her arms, then held it out for Winter.

"This cloak is very important to me. I didn't wanna leave it behind, but I know I have to, so…" She looked up at Winter, her eyes wavering. "Could you keep it safe for me, until we meet again? I know it's silly, what with-"

Winter raised a hand to silence her. "It's not silly. I'm honored you're trusting me with this, Ruby." She took the cloak gingerly and nodded. "I'll hand it back to you myself, without a tear on it. This I swear to you, as your teacher, and your friend."

Ruby brought her hands to her mouth and bit on her knuckles. "Winter… I want another hug!"

"Another?" Winter gasped exasperatedly, then spread her arms. "Fine. Bring it in."

Ruby wrapped her arms around Winter in a bear-hug, then hopped back and nodded, all nervousness gone from her face.

"I'll be back before you know it," she said. "And I'll have Weiss with me!"

Winter smiled. "I would expect nothing less of my best pupil."

* * *

Ruby watched the ship sail away from the island with a nervous tingling on the back of her neck. She was worried for Winter. Though they hadn't faced much trouble on the way here, there was no telling what could happen on the travel back to the Earth Kingdom. There was always the chance of discovery by a Fire Nation patrol. Not to mention that Winter and her crew were still unwanted on Earth Kingdom soil.

But, if she were to be honest, she was far more worried about herself. While she was still on the ship, the idea of delving into the Fire Nation in search of Weiss and Yang had been just that, an idea. A dangerous adventure, but Ruby had had plenty of those just in the time since she'd been broken free of that iceberg on South Pole waters.

Now, with her feet on unfamiliar shores, and Winter's ship shrinking in the horizon, the reality of the situation was beginning to set in. This was no simple trip with a promise of safe haven at the end. Coming across enemies wasn't a matter of chance anymore, it would undoubtedly happen. She was the sworn enemy of the entire Fire Nation.

Maybe she should have asked Winter to wish her good luck, even if she knew her teacher didn't believe in things like that…

Ruby shook her head and took a deep breath. There was no good in worrying herself sick already. She had barely taken a step yet. She could save the freaking out for later, when it was a little more warranted.

She turned around and walked further inland, leaving the sandy shores to join her father and friends at the grassy terrain of the island. "Alright, guys! We're officially in enemy territory!" she said cheerfully. "So, what now? How do we find Weiss and Yang?"

"Hey, now, let's slow down a bit," Taiyang said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I want to find them as badly as you, but we're not gonna be able rescue them if we're captured too. We have to take some precautions first."

"But if we're captured, there is a chance they would throw us in the same prison as Weiss and Yang, right? And then we could break out together!" Jaune said, and looked at the others for approval. When even Pyrrha showed no signs of agreeing with him, he sighed and slumped his shoulders in defeat. "I mean, usually my plans aren't that much better than that, and they work… most of the time…"

"Let's shelve that idea for now," Taiyang said. "First order of business is, we have to make sure nobody recognizes us. Ruby and Pyrrha left their weapons behind, but I don't think that's gonna cut it. We have to blend in, like we're really Fire Nation. So, we're gonna need new clothes."

"Perhaps I should do something about my hair," Pyrrha said thoughtfully. "You too, Ruby. Actually, that would seem even more important with you."

Ruby's hands shot to the top of her head, and she looked at Pyrrha like she'd just said they should just cut it off her neck altogether. "What's wrong with my hair?!"

"Nothing! It's very pretty, really," Pyrrha said gently. "But I'd say it's even more recognizable than your staff. I've never met anyone with natural red tips like yours."

Ruby puffed her cheeks. "It's not like I am iconic on purpose."

"Iconic…?" Pyrrha repeated, looking perplexed.

"I could grow a mustache!" Jaune exclaimed genially.

Ruby turned pale as she imagined what he'd look like if he actually went through with that suggestion. She looked at Pyrrha and saw that she was smiling supportively at Jaune, though she also seemed about to faint at the same time.

"Okay, children, I'm glad to see you engaged and excited and all that, but let's not get ahead of ourselves," Taiyang said with a mediating tone of voice. "Let's take it slow. We can go to the town on the south shores, see what we can do about the clothes situation there. We're gonna have to pay it a visit eventually, anyway."

"Why's that?" Jaune asked. "I thought the plan was to stay away from people, for the most part."

"Yes, but I'm afraid we can't avoid civilization forever. That town's got something we need," Taiyang said. "A boat."

"A boat?" Jaune said, turning green. "But we just got out of a boat…"

"No. We just got out of a _ship_. A boat is way less secure and comfortable!" Taiyang stated. "It's a small distinction, but an important one. Don't forget it."

Pyrrha patted Jaune's back. "Yeah, I don't think he's going to…"

* * *

They trekked through the southwestern corner of the island, passing through the small mountains and spiraling rocks in order to stay hidden from unwanted eyes. When they came out into the open again, they were on a cliff overseeing the town below. It had looked small from Winter's ship, but Ruby was surprised to find it was actually quite lively, with several commercial and residential buildings, and a port that spanned almost a third of the southern shore, with barely a vacant spot for a ship.

They carefully descended from their heightened position, then approached the town from the side, where it was likely for them to be spotted. When they crossed into the limits of the settlements, it was directly into the backyard of a large house. The place seemed deserted, but there was a clothesline raised close to the porch on the back. The clothes seemed to have been hung up just recently.

"Well, isn't that convenient," Taiyang said. "Take your picks, kids."

"Wait, we're not gonna steal those clothes, right?" Ruby asked, her eyes widening. "We can't! We don't even know who they belong to. Can't we just buy some instead? Or, uhm… I don't know, anything else _but_ stealing?"

"I wish there was another way, Ruby, but we have no money, so this is the only option." Taiyang sighed. "If it makes you feel any better, these people look well-off. I don't think they're even gonna notice anything's gone missing."

"No, that doesn't make me feel better," Ruby grunted. "Whatever. Let's just get this done with quick. And we're only gonna take what we need!"

Taiyang rubbed the back of his head, his eyes fleeing hers. Ruby frowned, regretting that she'd made him feel guilty. It wasn't like he _wanted_ to steal from people, that was obvious. So why explode on him like that?

She wracked her head for something to say that would make the situation better, but then she felt two hands lay softly on her shoulders.

"Here, Ruby," Pyrrha said, guiding her over to the clothesline. "Let's find you something nice to change into, okay?"

Ruby opened her mouth to say that she didn't _want_ something nice to change into, but stopped herself. She might not like what they were doing, but there was no reason to be petty about it. And since had absolutely zero fashion sense, she appreciated Pyrrha helping her out.

Ten minutes later, the four of them had all changed into their new clothes. Jaune and Taiyang had opted for a simple combination of red and white shirts, short pants and shoes, as was common of Fire Nation men. Though Taiyang was the Fire Lord's former spouse, his face wasn't all that recognizable to most folks, but for good measure, he took a hat that disguised his features a bit.

Pyrrha changed into a sleeveless red top and a black skirt, then ventured around the house in search of a reflective surface like a window or a pond. A short time later, she returned with her hair cut to the top of her shoulders. It looked a little rough around the edges, since she hadn't had much time to make the cut properly, but after a promise to herself that she'd fix it up later, and a reassurance that she still looked as stunning as ever from Jaune, Pyrrha didn't seem bothered at all by the change.

Finally, there was Ruby. She took pretty much the first options Pyrrha suggested to her, a white shirt and a red skirt. Her hair was a trickier matter. It was already short, so cutting it like Pyrrha wasn't a solution, and a hat wouldn't cover its red tips.

"Maybe we should just take the risk?" Ruby said nervously. "I mean, I don't see a solution here…"

"You _could_ cut it all off," Jaune said.

Ruby glared at him. "You're just full of bright ideas today, aren't you?"

"Really, Ruby? You would rather be captured than go bald for a little while?" he asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Actually, yes, I think I would," Ruby said. "How about _you_ go bald, Jaune? I mean, it's just for a little while! No biggie!"

Jaune sighed in resignation. "If it's for the good of the world… If I must…"

"D-don't try to guilt me! This is so unfair!" Ruby shouted.

"Calm down, Ruby. You don't need to go bald, I think I have a solution," Pyrrha said. She went to the clothesline and returned with a new item, and handed it to Ruby. "Try this out."

Ruby eyed the clothe weirdly. It was a light red coat, but its sleeves were nearly nonexistent, not to mention that the whole thing had barely any weight at all. She put it on, but aside from its color, she might as well not be wearing anything at all over her white shirt.

"I don't get this thing," Ruby said quietly. "This isn't just me, right? Fire Nation fashion is weird as heck."

"I think it looks cool!" Jaune said.

"You think your mustache looks cool, so…" Ruby shook her head. "Pyrrha, how is this thing supposed to help me be less… me?"

"Funny you should say that, because I happen to think that this…" Pyrrha said, walking around Ruby to stand at her back. "…is very much you."

She flicked a hand up, and Ruby felt a light weight fall on her head. Her eyes darted up, then to the sides – and she smiled.

"A hood…" she squealed. "I take back everything I said. I love my new coat. Even if it was acquired in a morally questionable way and it should be returned as soon as possible."

"How quickly we forget…" Jaune muttered.

"You probably shouldn't wear it up all the time, though," Pyrrha said. "That would look suspicious for a whole other reason."

"Pyrrha." Ruby grabbed the hood and pulled it up even further. "Never say those words again."

"Okay…" Taiyang stepped in, dragging Ruby away from Pyrrha for everyone's safety. "Now that we're outfitted, we need to take care of our second problem – acquiring that boat. That means going out in public. Let's try and act like we belong, everyone."

"Yes, sir!" Jaune exclaimed enthusiastically. "Them's words that leave my mouth ain't gon' be suspicious not for a'momen', sir!"

Taiyang's jaw dropped. "Jaune, what… What are you doing?"

"Ah 'em puttin' on a Fire Nation accen', sir!" Jaune replied. "Issit good o' no', sir?"

Taiyang stared at him for a while, then smiled widely. "Yeah. It's great, Jaune," he said. "You're doing great."

* * *

"So, why exactly do we need a boat?" Jaune asked. "I see plenty of ships here… Don't they have ferry services in the Fire Nation?"

"They do," Taiyang said. "But the Fire Nation's a pretty big archipelago, and the distance between some of the islands is so great, it takes days to get from one to the other. We could rely on ferries, yeah, but that would mean subjecting ourselves to waiting around, and time's not exactly on our side here." He shrugged. "Plus, there's the issue of money. Unless one of you kids is sitting on a big Fire Nation inheritance, our pockets are pretty much empty."

"I don't think my coat has pockets, actually, which is pretty annoying now that I notice it. Why did you have to mention pockets?" Ruby said. She stopped walking for a moment. "Wait, Dad, do _I_ have an inheritance? Not that I _want_ one or anything, but, you're pretty much royalty, or you used to be. Does that mean there's a room full of gold waiting for me somewhere?"

"I… Err… That's an excellent question, Ruby," Taiyang said, rubbing his nose. "Look at those ships! So majestic, I must get a closer look immediately!"

He sped up, skipping past several houses on his way to the town's port. Ruby looked at Jaune and Pyrrha and shrugged. She'd lived fifteen years of her life eating from the fruits of the same trio of trees, so being short for money didn't seem like much of a big deal to her.

"Wow, there are a lot of ships here today," Taiyang said as they caught up to him. "Like, _a lot_ a lot. I don't think I've seen ever this port so full before."

"Wait, you've been here before, Dad?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, plenty of times," Taiyang said. "This town's a popular stopping point for ships. I believe it's the farthest Fire Nation island to the west, and if it's not, it's certainly the biggest one. You're practically required to make a stop here if you're sailing to or from the Earth Kingdom."

"Neat. I'm learning so much already," Ruby said. "This is like getting to know my second home." She pulled on her hood a bit. "I just wish it didn't have to be this way, and you could show me stuff without us having to worry about getting captured or hurt or… everything." She frowned. "And I wish Yang was with us."

Taiyang offered her a warm smile and passed an arm around her shoulders. "Well, I can still show you stuff. And what I can't show you, I'll tell you about." He chuckled. "As long as you promise to be responsible with the knowledge. Deal?"

"Okay. Deal!"

They continued to walk on the docks, passing by fishermen, merchants and soldiers. Ruby felt her father's hold tighten every time they passed by the latter, and though she felt she could probably protect him better than he could protect her, it still felt nice to have him looking out for her. It was like a hole was being filled in her life, one she didn't even know existed until now.

"So, Mister Taiyang," Pyrrha said, looking thoughtfully at the row of ships on the water. "What kind of boat are we looking for? I imagine we'd want something fast and relatively small, since we're only four people and we want to stay undetected. There are many like that here. If we could acquire one of them somehow…"

"Do you think any of those would hold up if struck by a light sea breeze?" Taiyang asked. "Figuratively speaking, of course."

"Ah. Well, if those people use them, I have to imagine they're at least somewhat reliable," Pyrrha said. "Though they might just stick to short distances. And since we're going to be traveling a lot…"

"You're not wrong, but that's not exactly what I'm thinking about," Taiyang said. "Hey, Jaune, when you picture a firebender, what's the first adjective that comes to mind?"

"Hawt, sir!" Jaune exclaimed immediately. "Firebenders are hawt!"

Pyrrha threw him the closest thing to a glare she was capable of. "What kind of firebender are you picturing, exactly?"

"Uhm… Le' me think of somethin' else, sir." Jaune rubbed his throat nervously, then nodded. "Scary, sir. Scary an' angery."

"Yes, you've nailed it! Angery!" Taiyang clapped his hands. "I mean, _angry_. Firebenders, and Fire Nation natives in general, are famous for their temper."

"I thought that was just a stereotype because of the war," Pyrrha said.

"Maybe a little. But anger and firebending have, unfortunately, been associated for as long as anyone can remember," Taiyang said. "Now imagine a whole nation of people with short fuses, some of them with the ability to shoot fire out of their hands and feet and mouths, and then realize that there's hundreds of miles of empty space around and in-between them… What do you think happens then, Ruby?"

Ruby stopped walking for a moment, taking her eyes off the ships to look past them, at the sea that seemed to stretch endlessly beyond the island. A sense of unease crept up her arms and neck, making her hairs stand on end. She felt small all of a sudden, and she wished she had her cloak back so she could hide inside it.

"We were safe on Winter's ship because, in general, the Grimm know better than to attack a vessel of that size and build," Taiyang said. "But if we set out on those waters in a measly fishing boat… Well, it ain't gon' be pretty for us. Pardon the accen', I'm slippin' back."

"Ain't nobody judgin', sir," Jaune mumbled, looking a little disturbed himself.

"What you're saying, then, is that we need a boat that is fast, discreet, and that can hold out against a Grimm attack," Pyrrha said. "That sounds like a tall order, Mister Taiyang. How are we going to find a boat like that, let alone acquire it?"

"Not by stealing it, I hope," Ruby said quietly.

"No. With so many soldiers around the place, I think we'd fail spectacularly if we tried something like that, and get our covers blown to boot," Taiyang said. "But I know a way to get what we need. No foul play necessary."

Ruby turned towards him, her curiosity peaking. He saw her looking at him and bowed his head, his hands limping restlessly at his sides.

"I'm gonna have to head back into town for that," he said. "Meanwhile, you three should stay around these parts. Try and lay low, but see if you can't investigate a little. There's so many Navy vessels here, and soldiers too… Something smells fishy."

"And it ain't be because o' dis bein' a dock, sir," Jaune agreed, dead serious.

"We'll see what we can find out," Pyrrha said.

"Alright. You kids stay safe," Taiyang said. "We'll meet again here in a couple hours."

He nodded, then started walking back towards the town proper. Ruby looked at Jaune and Pyrrha, biting her lip nervously. She should probably do as her father said, but…

She shook her head and blurted out a bye to her friends, then raced after Taiyang, catching up to him in seconds. He stopped to look at her, dismay clear on his face, though he also didn't appear surprised at all.

"Let me guess, you're coming with me and there's nothing I can say to convince you otherwise," he said.

Ruby nodded seriously. "That's it. I'm not gonna let you go anywhere alone. I know you can take care of yourself, but we're in enemy territory. We gotta look after each other."

"Is that so?" Taiyang said. "And I suppose curiosity wouldn't have anything to do with it?"

"Kinda." Ruby shrugged. "Or maybe I just wanna spend some time with you."

She looked at him sheepishly, and Taiyang grinned. "Fine. Let's have a father-daughter adventure, then," he said. "Just promise to be careful, okay?"

"Yeah, I'm always careful! Super careful! I'm the most careful person you've ever met, probably!" Ruby exclaimed.

Taiyang didn't seem very convinced. Regardless, he walked away and let her follow him without objecting.

* * *

Minutes later, they were standing in front of a house in the northern part of the town. It was quite a big building, especially compared to the other houses around it. It was a little lacking when it came to windows, though, except for a couple near the roof. Ruby wondered why that was. She thought most houses were bad enough with proper lighting and air circulation – she shuddered at the thought of going inside this one.

She still wasn't going to let her father go in alone, though.

"Now I know what you're gonna say, but I have to ask," Taiyang said wearily as he raised a hand to knock on the door. "Do you really have to come with me, rose petal?"

"Yup. I really have to," Ruby said. "And you calling me rose petal isn't gonna do anything. I mean, it makes me feel warm inside, but I don't see how that helps you any."

"I suppose I can't be upset about that." Taiyang sighed. "I do believe this would go better if you waited outside, Ruby. But I'm not going to force you."

Ruby shrugged. "You think making this sound scary is gonna make me _not_ go in with you?"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Taiyang said, grinning despite himself. "Just let me do the talking, okay? And keep your hood on."

"You don't have to tell me!" she replied giddily.

Taiyang put on a serious face, then knocked on the door. A few seconds later, a slit near the top of it slid to the side, and an eye appeared at the other side.

"State your business," a gruff male voice said.

"I'm here to talk to your boss," Taiyang said, raising his chin importantly. "What about is for her ears only."

"Is that so?" the man behind the door said, then after a few seconds of silence, "Password?"

Taiyang blinked. "Wait, there's a password?"

The slit slammed shut. Taiyang turned and looked at Ruby, silently begging for her not to say anything. She decided to have mercy on him and just shook her head in disappointment.

"Drat. I knew this had to be harder than Qrow makes it sound," Taiyang said under his breath, then turned towards the door and knocked again, less surely this time. "Hey! Hear me out for a moment, will you?"

The slit opened again, and the eye reappeared. "Speak."

Ruby watched her father falter a little, as if hesitating, before he straightened up and spoke with a finality to his voice. "Tell your boss Taiyang Xiao Long is here to see her. She'll definitely be interested."

The eye stared at him for a moment, then the slit closed and they heard someone stomping away from the door.

"Dad!" Ruby hissed once the footsteps faded. "Did you just tell your name to a complete stranger? A _shady_ , weird eye-in-the-door, stranger?" She gestured at her clothes. "What was the point of _this_ , then?"

"There was no other option, Ruby. We need a boat, and for that, we need to get inside this place," Taiyang said. "And look at the bright side – at least I didn't tell him you're the Avatar! That would have been way worse."

"Yeah, I guess you're not wrong about that. But that doesn't mean you're right either!" Ruby frowned. "Ugh, now I get why Weiss gets annoyed with me so easy."

"Must run in the family," Taiyang noted cheekily.

"I don't know if we should be proud about that…" Ruby said. "Who's this person we're gonna talk to, anyway?"

" _I'm_ gonna talk to," Taiyang corrected. "Just wait, and you'll see."

Ruby grumbled under her breath. She was starting to get tired of all this secrecy business.

A couple minutes later, a man opened the door, presumably the one who had interrogated Taiyang before. He took a long look at Ruby – and she made sure to stand in a way that her hood covered most of her face – then turned and gestured for them to follow.

Taiyang walked inside first, then Ruby went after him, keeping her eyes trained on his back. Like she'd thought, the lack of windows in the house meant there was barely any light inside it. If it weren't for a few candles scattered throughout the place and their gruff, wordless guide, they would have gotten lost almost immediately after taking their first step inside.

After a bit of walking, they got to a set of wooden stairs next to a wall, going downwards. As they descended, Ruby finally saw a hint of proper illumination ahead of them, though it was still dim. She discovered why when they reached the bottom. There was a sort of archway a few steps after the end of the stairs, blocked by various layers of purple and pink silk sheets that hanged from the top of it.

The man parted the silks, then nodded for them to go ahead. Taiyang cast a look back at Ruby, and she pulled on her hood a bit, then they went under the archway together.

They exited into a large saloon that could have belonged in a tavern or inn. A chandelier hanging from the ceiling cast light all across the room, including the bar at the corner with a man behind it, cleaning a row of glasses on the counter. Most of the floor was taken up by tables and chairs, with a few of them occupied by people so shifty they made their guide look like a schoolboy.

Seated at one of the tables was a large woman clad in silk clothes the same color as the sheets at the entrance. She had a shrew look about her, as if she could divine a secret from someone just by gazing at them. Ruby was immediately distrustful of her, even more so when she saw them and her lips parted in a wide smile.

"Ah, Taiyang Xiao Long!" She stood up and clapped her hands. "The _actual_ Taiyang Xiao Long. What a pleasant surprise. Come, come take a seat."

She sat down again and gestured at the chairs on the other side of the table. Taiyang walked up to the table and sat down, while Ruby remained standing behind him. She wouldn't be able to hide her face from the woman very well if they were level with each other. Besides, she'd be able to act faster if something went wrong if she were on her feet.

"Hello," Taiyang said awkwardly, looking the woman up and down with a furrowed forehead. "You're Lil' Miss Malachite?"

"The one and only," the woman replied haughtily. "You seem surprised, Mister Xiao Long. Why?"

"Oh, sorry. It's nothing." Taiyang scratched his chin. "I guess I thought you'd be, you know… _little_ …"

She glared at him, and he just chuckled nervously. Ruby pursed her lips, wishing she hadn't left her staff behind so she could smack him in the head with it.

"And you've brought a friend? A little friend…" Miss Malachite said, casting a sharp look Ruby's way. "You know, I don't appreciate unannounced guests, especially when they don't show their faces…"

"Oh, I'm very sorry. That's… Robin. She's my, uh… my niece," Taiyang said. "She's very shy, doesn't like to show her face. Took years for her to show it to me. And still, I've never heard her talk. So shy, so shy!"

"How awful. Hopefully you will grow out of that, sweetie," Miss Malachite said, obviously unconvinced. "She's your niece, you said? That'd make her…"

"Qrow's kid." Taiyang nodded. "Yup. She's definitely his kid. The rumors were right, who woulda thought!"

Ruby _really_ wished she had kept her staff.

"Well, then. Moving on from your _niece_ ," Miss Malachite said. "You've come here to ask something of me, yes? Unless you're just dropping by for tea and a chat." Her eyes narrowed. "Which would make me very disappointed."

"You're right. I'm here for a favor," Taiyang said. "I'm in need of a boat. A boat that can house four people and take them quickly and securely across the Fire Nation. Can you get me one of those?"

"Can I get you one?" Miss Malachite repeated in a mockery of his voice. "Yes. You wouldn't have known about me if I couldn't." She leaned on the table, tapping her fingers against each other. "But you realize my business doesn't work like that, yes? I don't do favors. When you ask a service of me, I require something of equal valor in exchange."

"Of course. So what price do you think would be fair for you to procure what I need?" Taiyang asked.

"Normally, acquiring a boat like that would be a trifling matter. But we are not living in normal times," Miss Malachite said. "You must have seen the state of the docks. The Fire Lord has sunk her claws on nearly every ship in her blessed territory. That doesn't make them inaccessible, not to me, but…"

"How much money, then?" Taiyang asked.

"Let's not beat around the bush, Mister Consort," Miss Malachite said sharply and straightened up. "You are no longer the man of station you used to be. If you have any money, it's not nearly enough to compensate me for my troubles. Even if it were, I wouldn't be satisfied with such a payment. I don't need money, especially not from you. What you _can_ give me…"

"…is information," Taiyang said, smiling bitterly. "I imagined as much."

"Yes, and we both know you're desperate enough to give it. You wouldn't have come to me if you had any other choice," Miss Malachite said. "You've walked the halls of the Vacuo Palace, and you've been inside its throne room countless times, listening, watching. For the longest time, the Fire Lord's will was _your_ will… That means you know things, Taiyang Xiao Long, that most people don't." She smiled. "And I would like to know those things too."

For a long while, Taiyang was silent, staring down at the table between them. Then, he opened his mouth…

Ruby punched his shoulder.

"Agh! Ru - _Robin_!" Taiyang exclaimed. "What was that for?!"

Ruby leaned next to his head and glared at him, so close there was no possible way he couldn't see it, even with her hood up.

"Seems like your little shy friend has something to say to you. Or _gesticulate_. Whatever she's more comfortable doing," Miss Malachite deadpanned. "Please, take your time. I'm not going anywhere."

Ruby hummed gratefully and grabbed her father by the ear, then dragged him to a corner away from the conniving woman in purple.

"Ruby, what the heck?" Taiyang said, rubbing his aching ear. "You're making a scene. What's this all about?"

"You lied to me!" Ruby hissed. "You said there was a way to get us a boat, _no foul play necessary_! And here we are, negotiating with… with her!"

She gestured at Lil' Miss Malachite, who seemed very content to watch them from afar.

"I know it seems bad, but it's just a little information sharing," Taiyang said. "It's not like before with the clothes. We're not really hurting anybody."

"No, Dad, it's even worse than before! You're giving precious information to a… a thug! That's what she is, a thug!" Ruby said. "What do you think she's gonna do with that, Dad? Build an orphanage? Feed the poor?"

"I don't think she's that altruistic," Taiyang said. "Ruby, I don't like this either. I hate it. But do I hate it more than I want to find your sister and Weiss?" He shook his head. "Do _you_?"

Ruby clenched her fists. "That's not fair."

"I know. But it's the price we'll have to pay if we want to get them back," he said softly. "You knew this was going to be tough when you asked me to come with you."

He was right. She'd known from the start. But she had imagined it would be dangerous like everything else had been dangerous before. Fight and flight kind of stuff. She'd never imagined things would be tough _this way_.

"Okay…" she whispered. "Whatever we have to do."

Taiyang rubbed her cheek under her hood for a moment, then they returned to the table and he sat back down.

"Well then, now that you're done with your little meeting…" Lil' Miss Malachite said. "I assume you're ready to pay the fee?"

"As long as you can provide what I want," Taiyang said.

"We have a deal." She smiled. "You can start talking."

* * *

Jaune and Pyrrha's investigation of the port didn't deliver them any answers as to why there were so many Fire Navy ships there. After nearly being caught in a couple of compromising situations by the dozens of soldiers there, they decided to drop the matter altogether and leave the immediate area. No matter how careful they were, and no matter how much effort Jaune put into his _accent_ , being close to the enemy forces was just too risky.

Hopefully Ruby and her father would have better results with their task than they'd had with theirs.

"Would it be too much to hope for that the Fire Navy is just having a massive ship sale?" Jaune suggested as they walked away from the ships. "Kinda like an igloo sale?"

"I'm sorry, a what now?" Pyrrha said, looking at him in confusion.

"An igloo sale. You know, when someone has a lot of stuff in their house so they set up a day to sell everything off to the neighbors at a discount," Jaune said. "You've never heard of an igloo sale?"

"Jaune, I think you're forgetting that I didn't have igloos where I grew up," Pyrrha said. "Most people didn't have them where they grew up."

"Oh, right. I did forget that. The heat must be getting to my head." Jaune rubbed his forehead. "Either that, or it's the accent. It takes a lot out of you, maintaining two totally distinct but equally colorful personalities, you know?"

"I can tell."

Pyrrha looked away from him and towards the town, where Ruby and Taiyang had gone off to, and Jaune saw her shoulders slump ever so slightly.

"Hey, Pyrrha," he said, inching closer to her. "You okay? You look a little bummed out."

Surprised, Pyrrha looked at him again. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you worry, Jaune. I'm okay." She paused. "I'm just… Well, I'm a little worried about Ruby. She seems a little on edge lately."

"I know what you mean. She's kinda been that way since Vale," Jaune said. "She just misses Weiss. You know how much she means to her."

"I know. And she lost Yang too, just when they were getting to know each other," Pyrrha said. "I just wish there was something we could do for her. I mean, we're here for her, but that's not going to help her. Not really." She sighed. "I'll be honest with you, Jaune – this whole thing has been making me feel pretty much useless. I know it's selfish to feel that way, but it's the truth."

"I get that. I wish I could fix all of this with my sword, but that's not gonna cut it this time," Jaune said. "I guess all we can really do is work hard to get Weiss and Yang back. Everything will work out in the end."

Pyrrha smiled. "That's a very positive way to look at things, Jaune. I think I'll just follow your example and keep my head high throughout this ordeal."

Jaune smiled and nodded, happy that he had managed to cheer her up, even if only a little.

"It's been quite some time since Ruby and her dad left," Pyrrha said. "We should probably head back to the meeting spot and see if they're there."

"Sounds like a plan," Jaune said. "And if they're not there, maybe I can start teaching you the accent. It would be kinda suspicious if only half the group had it – though I'm not sure Ruby can pull it off."

"Yeah… Wonderful idea, Jaune…"

They walked away, so distracted that they failed to look at the notice board they went past, and therefore didn't notice the four wanted posters nailed to it… and the familiar faces they depicted.

* * *

After meeting back up and explaining what each pair had accomplished, the group left the town and found a quiet place in the mountains near its limits. There, they had a modest meal with the provisions Winter's crew had given them, and then they planned for what was ahead.

"Lil' Miss Malachite will be delivering us our boat after the moon comes up," Taiyang said. "Presumably, she needs a little time to get a hold of it first before she can get it to us. She'll bring it to us herself, around the same beach where Winter dropped us off."

"Can we really trust her to do hold up her part of the deal, though?" Jaune asked. "I'm not doubting you, Mister Taiyang, it's just that, from what you and Ruby told us of her, she doesn't seem like a very honorable sort of person."

"You're right, we shouldn't trust her," Taiyang said. " _But_ we should trust her to at least deliver us what she promised. If there's one thing Lil' Miss Malachite prizes more than information and money, it's her reputation. If she breaks a deal and word gets around, it's her business that hurts the most."

"And what exactly is her business…?" Pyrrha again.

"This, and that."

"He means shady stuff," Ruby said. "I'm gonna go practice my waterbending."

She stomped off, leaving the rest of the group in an awkward silence.

* * *

Night fell, and they headed out of their temporary camp, taking another route through the mountains towards the west. Some twenty minutes later, they came out into the beach. From there, they followed the shoreline north, until they came across a pair of rocks in the sand carved into the shape of a spider – Malachite's symbol.

"Doesn't look like there's anyone around here," Jaune said. "Maybe she changed her mind?"

"Let's just wait and see. She may have had some trouble finding a boat after all," Taiyang said. "We'll give her a couple hours. You guys good with that?"

Jaune shrugged. "It's not like we've got anywhere else to be."

"I think I can get a better look from up there," Pyrrha said, pointing at a formation of rocks close behind them. "Wanna come with me, Jaune?"

"Sure," he replied immediately, then took a longer look at the rocks. "Just, uh, you'll hold onto me up there, right?"

"Yes. I won't let you fall, my knight."

She giggled and led him away by the hand. Ruby turned to her father and opened her mouth, then put a finger inside it, rolling her eyes exaggeratedly.

"I swear, those two are gonna make me puke someday," she said. "It was cute at first, but it's getting to be a little too much now."

"You'll get over it," Taiyang said, grinning. "They'll get over it, too, and then you'll wish they went back to just being cute."

"Yeah, I don't think that's gonna happen," Ruby said. She looked down at her feet, and a little smile appeared on her lips. "I'm happy for them."

"That's good, rose petal. That's good."

He patted her on the back, and Ruby leaned her head on his arm – then shuffled away, a terrible feeling of guilt washing over her. How could she enjoy her father's presence, how could she smile, when she knew that Weiss and Yang were out there, suffering alone?

She needed to find them quick.

"Hey, Dad," Ruby said quietly. "You don't think we could ask Lil' Miss Malachite about Weiss and Yang, do you?"

"I wish we could," Taiyang said. "But we've already risked too much telling her what we have. She knows something is up with me. If I went and started making more questions, then she'd surely connect the dots."

"And who knows what she'd ask for in return." Ruby nodded. "I guess we'll have to find Weiss and Yang some other way."

"I already have an idea, actually," Taiyang said. "I know a guy, his name is Leonardo Lionheart. If anyone can help us locate them, it's him."

"And he'll help us like Miss Malachite helped us, or…?" Ruby asked warily.

"No, he's a good friend. You don't have anything to worry about there."

Ruby hummed, his assurance setting her somewhat at ease. She'd been ready to accept Lil' Miss Malachite's help if necessary, but she hadn't been the least happy about it. Having a cleaner alternative was a big relief.

"Ruby, Taiyang!" Jaune yelled behind them, and Ruby looked back to see him and Pyrrha returning from their vantage point on top of the rocks. "We saw a ship coming. It's probably her!"

"Good. Don't let your guards down," Taiyang said. "Ruby, you know what to do."

Ruby pulled her hood up and stepped back so she was standing a little behind Pyrrha, where she was less noticeable. She drew a deep breath as her arms limped uselessly at her sides. She would normally fiddle with the edges of her cloak in such stressful situations, but that was not an option anymore, for obvious reasons. With no outlet to that nervous energy, all she could do was worry about what was about to happen.

She felt like she was going to explode if she had to wait any longer – until Jaune called her attention by tapping her leg with the back of his foot. He looked back at her and tapped his sword's sheathe, then nodded encouragingly. After a moment's hesitation, Ruby returned the nod and looked ahead again with a strengthened resolve.

Finally, the boat came into view, skirting around the spires that rose from the seafloor around the island. As it came closer, Ruby got a better idea of its size – it looked to be about a third of Winter's ship in height, not counting the sails, and a fifth of it in length. The hull and the passengers' cabin were made of metal, but most everything else was wood. It was a far call from the ships Ruby had traveled in so far, but that was hardly a negative – if anything, the boat looked cozy.

The boat did lose that image when it landed on the beach, and the person standing at the prow became visible. Lil' Miss Malachite looked at them from on high with a haughty smile, seemingly content to just watch for a while, before she turned her back and began her descend to the beach through the boat's boarding ramp.

" _That's_ Lil' Miss Malachite?" Jaune whispered. "I thought she was supposed to be… err, little?"

Pyrrha gasped. "Jaune!"

"What? She's a crime boss!" Jaune said, raising his hands defensively. "And don't pretend you didn't think the same thing!"

"Still, you should never say something like that about anyone!" Pyrrha admonished.

"She's absolutely right, Jaune," Taiyang said, shaking his head sadly. "It's unbecoming of a young man like you to say things like that. You've got some things to learn when it comes to being sensitive towards others."

"R-right…" Jaune bowed his head. "I'll work on that, sir."

Ruby really wanted to say something to expose her father's blatant hypocrisy, but she kept her lips shut tight as Lil' Miss Malachite walked from the ship and stopped before the group.

Her hands joined behind her back, Miss Malachite studied each of them in turn. Though she barely payed Taiyang any attention, her eyebrows did raise when she examined Jaune and Pyrrha – and then her eyes lingered on Ruby, so long the girl suspected she was imagining things due to how nervous she was feeling.

"Well, then," Miss Malachite said, looking at Taiyang again, and gestured grandiosely behind her. "Here is the boat you so desperately needed. Its build should be enough to take you anywhere you want in the Fire Nation regardless of natural conditions. As a bonus, it is faster than most Navy-approved vessels, so should you happen to be find yourself in a pinch and need to make a swift escape…" She smirked. "Though I don't see why such a situation would ever befall you, Mister Consort."

"Me neither," Taiyang said humorlessly, appraising the boat from afar. "And it can withstand Grimm attacks at sea?"

"Of course. To a reasonable degree. You'll still need to be cautious, but that would not change even if you were sailing the Fire Lord's personal ship," Miss Malachite said. "If I knew of a surefire way to deal with the creatures of Grimm… Well, I would not be doing business on a deserted beach at the dead of night, and I'll leave it at that."

"Fair enough," Taiyang said. "Everything seems to be in order, then. You came through."

"Are you suggesting there was the possibility that I wouldn't?" Miss Malachite asked, her voice deceptively sweet.

"It would be very stupid of me to suggest that." Taiyang offered his hand. "We'll be going now. Thank you for your service."

Lil' Miss Malachite shook his hand, and as she did, Ruby watched her expression sharpen, that thin veil of politeness being discarded in the blink of an eye.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you, Mister Xiao Long," she said. "And now I'd like to suggest you another deal."

Taiyang took back his hand, his demeanor changing to match hers. "What are you talking about?"

"The terms are simple. I will allow you, and your two young friends there – the earthbender and the tribesman – to take your ship and leave without a problem. I won't tell a soul about you being here. You might as well have never set foot on this island," Miss Malachite said. "It would be so much harder to rescue your precious lost daughter if the Fire Lord and all her servants knew you were looking for her, wouldn't it?"

She raised a finger, then slowly lowered it to point at Ruby.

"In return, the Avatar stays behind, and I get to deliver her to the Fire Lord myself." Miss Malachite chuckled. "I think I might finally get to retire after that."

"You're crazy," Taiyang said, moving to stand between her and Ruby. "I don't know what you're talking about. The Avatar-"

"Don't treat me like an idiot! I have ears everywhere on Remnant, you think I haven't heard the rumors that the Avatar is secretly your child?" Miss Malachite spat. "I hardly believed any of that. It sounded like the highest type of nonsense people make up about royalty. But when you came in with her in tow, I began to have second thoughts… And now I am sure the stories are real!"

"Well, that doesn't change anything!" Taiyang yelled, alighting his fists. "I'm not letting you do anything to my daughter!"

Jaune drew his sword. "That's right, you're not laying a finger on her!"

"You'll have to go through all of us first," Pyrrha said, raising an arm to shield Ruby.

Lil' Miss Malachite looked to the sky and rolled her eyes, groaning loudly. Then, she took a step back and made a gesture over her shoulder. "I hate to ruin a good deal, but you leave me no choice."

Ruby felt the arrow cutting through the air before even hearing it. She jumped back in instinct, and the shaft buried itself in the sand between her feet. One frantic look around, and she found the bowman standing on top of one of the spires scattered along the beach. As soon as she saw him, more became apparent, other men and women wielding bow from similar positions – and then more thugs on the beach itself, appearing from the shadows with swords and spears in hand.

"Now, I know the dirtbender said I'll have to go through all of you first," Lil' Miss Malachite said. "But I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume she didn't mean that literally. Let's start over, this doesn't need to end in a tragedy. Right, Avatar? You don't want all your friends to die for you, do you?"

Ruby lowered her hood and walked forward, pushing Pyrrha's arm away as she tried to hold her back. She locked eyes with Lil' Miss Malachite, her fists clenching.

"If you're really so smart," she said. "You should have known better than to threaten my family!"

She punched in front of her, and the wind came rushing in behind her, striking Miss Malachite and knocking her off her feet. The rushing gale sent the crime boss rolling throughout the beach, kicking up sand, until she hit the sea and dropped under the waves. Seconds later, she reappeared at the surface, flailing her arms as she simultaneously struggled to get back on land, and pointed furiously at Ruby and her friends.

"Kill her!" she screeched. "Kill them all!"

"Everyone on me!" Pyrrha yelled, raising walls of stone behind and to both sides of her. Ruby dived under her protection, as did her father and Jaune.

"I knew this was gonna happen!" Ruby exclaimed. "Those jerks! I'm gonna-"

"We can't fight them all off!" Taiyang said. "We need a plan."

"How about we make a deal with _another_ gang of criminals so they can fight off _this_ gang of criminals for us?!" Ruby yelled, glaring at him. "That sound like a plan to you, Dad?"

"Ruby, please," Taiyang said beggingly. "We can talk about this later. Let's work together here."

"Okay. Here's the actual plan – we beat these guys up! Done!"

Ruby kicked under her, propelling herself high up the air – and was immediately met with a salvo of arrows, none of which hit her, but they came dangerously close to. She landed back on her feet and dusted her knees, puffing up her cheeks in annoyance.

"Okay, we might need an actual plan," she grumbled.

"Actually, I think you had the right idea. Or half of it," Jaune said. "Maybe a third."

"Gee, thanks."

"We need to get to the ship, but we if just make a run for it, it's gonna end badly. We've gotta be smart about it," Jaune elaborated. "You and your Dad are our best ranged attackers, so you deal with the bad guys as we retreat. Pyrrha will give us cover. And I…" He sighed. "I'm kinda out of shape, so my task will be to not throw up from the effort before we get there."

"Oh, honey, don't say that," Pyrrha said, pouting. "I think you're in excellent shape, all things considered!"

"Thanks, Pyrrha, that means a lot. Also, you've never called me honey before."

"You don't like it?"

"No, it's just a little weird to hear, but once I get used to it, I think-"

"Guys, not the time!" Ruby interrupted, snapping her fingers in front of their faces. "Get to the running!"

They ran out of Pyrrha's makeshift stronghold, bolting straight towards the boat. They had barely five seconds before arrows started to rain down on them again, but they either landed away from them, or they were blocked by the barriers that Pyrrha raised as they made their advance.

The thugs on the beach realized what their plan was and tried to intercept them, but Ruby and Taiyang were prepared for that, knocking them aside with bursts of air or scaring them off with fire. When they were free, the father-daughter duo took the time to shoot back at the bowmen, making them take cover and stop their arrows temporarily.

When they made it to the ship, no one was injured, and Jaune had not thrown up. Unfortunately, there was another problem at hand.

"Does anyone know how to turn a docked ship around?" Jaune asked as he caught his breath.

"Uh, I'm pretty sure there's a, uh, a thingamajig, in every ship, that helps with that?" Taiyang said unsurely. "I have no freaking clue! Maybe we push it back into the ocean?"

"We push it? You are never allowed to criticize my ideas ever again," Jaune said.

At the edge of the prow, Ruby helped Pyrrha raise one last barrier down on the beach to stop the thugs from chasing after them. As Pyrrha left to bring the boarding ramp up, Ruby then looked down at the water, an idea starting to take shape. _They_ couldn't push the ship, but they didn't need to, not when the ocean could do that for them.

Except she was just one waterbender, and the boat was so heavy it could take six to move it even a little bit. The only exception would be if they were a master waterbender.

If she had Weiss to help her…

"Ruby, what are you doing?" Jaune yelled, running up to her. "You wanna take an arrow to the forehead?"

For a moment, Ruby closed her eyes, clearing her mind. There was no time to be sad. No time to be helpless.

"I'm moving the ship," she said, and raised her arms in front of her. She thrusted forward, closed her hands, then pulled back, and opened her hands again.

No response.

She repeated the motion. Thrust, close, pull back, open.

Ever so faintly, the ocean responded to her command. She repeated the motion again, then again, getting into a steady rhythm, gritting her teeth in concentration…

_If you stay tense like that, all you're gonna accomplish is a bunch of pitiful splashes. The ocean isn't impatient, but you are. Be like the ocean._

She unclenched her jaw.

_Not just in this exercise, by the way. You could stand to be a little more patient in general._

The ship stirred.

_What do you mean I should take my own advice? I am incredibly patient! I have to be, to deal with - you know what, forget it. Just get back to the exercise._

And then it came free. Ruby let herself fall into a sitting position, a gasp of relief escaping her lips as she felt the boat drift away from the island little by little…

* * *

"Alright, I think we're all set," Jaune said, coming out of the cabins into the dock with Taiyang. "We've figured out how to steer the boat, and we're now sailing east-"

" _Probably_ east," Taiyang noted.

"-towards Sanctum Island-"

" _Probably_ Sanctum Island."

"-where we'll find Mister Taiyang's friend, Leo." Jaune paused. "Probably."

"That's excellent news!" Pyrrha said, standing up and clapping her hands. "We're already on our way to finding Weiss and Yang. Isn't that great, Ruby?"

Still sitting on the floor, Ruby mustered a smile and nodded. She glanced at her father, and immediately looked away, her shoulders slumping.

Suddenly, despite the sound of the winds pushing against the sails and the waves rolling by, the boat seemed very silent.

"I think Jaune and I are going to take a look at our room," Pyrrha said, looking between Ruby and Taiyang uneasily. "Jaune?"

"Yup," Jaune said. "Just, uh… Call us if something's up with the ship."

They retreated into the cabins, leaving Ruby alone with her father on the deck.

Ruby brought her knees up against her chest and hugged them, training her eyes on the horizon. She heard Taiyang sit down beside her, but for a while, he said nothing at all. When she did venture to look at him, she noticed the pained look on his face and realize he was probably as lost for words as she was.

"Ruby, I… I get it if you're mad at me," he started. "You have every right to be. The things we did back there, you said you weren't proud of them. You told me loud and clear, that it was wrong. But I just didn't listen to you. I didn't respect your judgement."

"I think I've been so focused on taking care of you, and making sure we can rescue your sister and Weiss – _for you_ , too – that I lost perspective. You're more than just my daughter. You're so much more than that. And yet…"

"I should have been better. I'm sorry I disappointed you."

Ruby bit her lip, feeling a shaking start from her shoulders, but she steeled herself and managed to speak calmly.

"I'm not mad at you," she said. "I mean, I was. That was pretty stupid, what happened, and I really wish you had listened to me… But I… kinda don't mind?"

Taiyang frowned with worry. "I don't think I get you, Ruby. You don't care?"

"No! It's not like…" Ruby punched her leg in frustration. She couldn't find an eloquent way to explain herself, so she was just going to say what was on her mind instead. "Weiss gets mad at me a lot, and I kinda get mad at her sometimes, too. But we're still, you know, we still really like each other. So I wouldn't change that about us, not for the world." She took a moment to breathe, feeling a lump in her throat all of a sudden. "We make each other better that way, I think."

She pulled on his arm and pressed herself against it, managing a small smile.

"If you weren't there with me today, I think I would have been miserable all day. But spending time with you was nice, even if stuff went wrong," she said. "I don't care if you make me mad, or you disappoint me, or whatever… As long as you're with me. As long as I get to know you. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah. I think I understand you," Taiyang said, smiling. "Though I'd like to think I'm more valuable to you than as just a lovable buffoon."

"Well, you're that way with Yang, but you also help her out a lot, right? I remember, even when we were kinda enemies and I didn't know you were my dad, you had this aura of wisdom about you all the time," Ruby said. "So maybe go back to being like that. Just be yourself with me. And I'll be myself with you. That's the only way we can really get to know each other, right?"

"Sure. Let me just reactivate the _aura of wisdom_ , then!"

He screwed up his face and stuck out his tongue, shaking in place. After a minute, he stopped and shrugged.

"Sorry, I got nothing for you right now. Kinda super tired," he said. "Immah sleep."

Without ceremony, he lied back on the dock and shut his eyes. In a matter of seconds, he was snoring as loud as a rhino.

"Really? Right here?" Ruby murmured. "Well I guess that habit had to come from somewhere…"

Feeling drowsy herself, she lied down and hugged his arm, resting her head on his shoulder.

For the first night in weeks, she drifted easily into sleep, and dreamed of only good things.


End file.
